WASHINGTON, Sept 28, 2007 (AFP) - US consumer spending rose 0.6 percent in August as Americans shrugged off credit and housing market turmoil, government data showed Friday.

The Commerce Department report was better than the 0.4 percent rise expected by Wall Street analysts and showed that a key driver of US economic activity remained strong.

Personal income however rose a more modest 0.3 percent, slightly below expectations of a 0.4 percent gain.

WASHINGTON, Aug 31, 2007 (AFP) - US consumer spending grew 0.4 percent in July, government data showed Friday, indicating a key component of economic activity held firm as the third quarter began.

The Commerce Department report also showed personal incomes rose 0.5 percent in July.

The figures were ahead of Wall Street expectations for a 0.3 percent increase in each index.

The personal consumption expenditure index, a measure of inflation, was up 0.1 percent, the same as the core index which excludes food and energy prices.

WASHINGTON, Aug 28, 2007 (AFP) - More than one in ten Americans, or 36.5 million people, live in poverty in the United States, with children and blacks the worst hit, an annual report by the US Census Bureau showed Tuesday.

According to the report, around 12.8 million children under the age of 18, or around one-third of the poor, existed in 2006 on incomes below the threshold used by the Census Bureau to determine who lives in poverty.

WASHINGTON, July 31, 2007 (AFP) - US consumer spending, a crucial driver of the American economy, cooled in June in line with most analysts' forecasts amid a nagging housing market slump, a government survey showed Tuesday.

The monthly report by the Commerce Department revealed that consumer spending increased 0.1 percent last month from May, after it had risen a revised 0.6 percent in May.

Most economists had expected spending to moderate as the US economy is vying to regain momentum amid the housing downturn and as consumers are buffeted by high gasoline prices.

WASHINGTON, July 31, 2007 (AFP) - US consumer spending, a crucial driver of the American economy, cooled in June in line with most analysts' forecasts while income held steady, according to a government survey Tuesday.

The monthly report by the Commerce Department revealed that consumer spending increased 0.1 percent last month from May while income rose 0.4 percent. Most analysts had anticipated a 0.1 percent gain in spending and a 0.5 percent rise in income.