Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Personal income in the United States rose slightly during the month of September, government figures showed Friday.
The Commerce Department said personal and disposable income both rose 0.9% for the month, and consumption spending rose by 1.4%.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic kept the monthly figures from any further growth, the department said.
"Federal economic recovery payments slowed, as pandemic-related assistance programs continued to wind down," the report said.
"The increase in personal income in September reflected increases in proprietors' income, compensation of employees, and rental income of persons that were partly offset by a decrease in government social benefits."
The department acknowledged that the true growth figures may be lower.
"The full economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be quantified in the personal income and outlays estimate because the impacts are generally embedded in source data and cannot be separately identified," it said.
The department issued its first third-quarter estimate on Thursday, which said the U.S. economy grew by 33%, which was about what most experts predicted.
U.S. stocks, however, have taken a beating this week. By 10 a.m. EDT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 200 points and the index was on path to close its worst week since March.
