U.S. consumer spent more in January

The January gain followed a drop of one percent in December 2008 and was even better than the 0.4 percent increase that economists had expected.

 U.S. consumer spending rose 0.6 percent in January,
rebounding from a record six consecutive months of declines, the Commerce
Department reported

Consumer spending on durable goods, items expected to last
at least three years such as cars and appliances, edged up by 0.1 percent last
month after having fallen by 0.9 percent in the previous month.