US consumer spending and inflation rise in November

US personal income rose 0.3% in November, having increased 0.4% in October, according to figures released by the Commerce Department.

The gain exceeded economists’ consensus of 0.2%.

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis inadvertently released the consumption part of its report late on Tuesday. It showed consumer spending - which accounts for more than two-thirds of economic activity in the US - increased 0.3% in November, having been unchanged the previous month.

Elsewhere, figures showed the PCE index, which is the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation, increased 0.4% from the same month last year – its biggest 12-month gain since the end of last year.