Will Personal Income rise in the Friday, 5/29 report? Forecasts are calling for a teeny tiny .4% lift.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on May 29, 2026 that personal income decreased less than $0.1 billion in April — essentially flat but technically negative — missing the 0.4 percent monthly gain that forecasters had projected. Disposable personal income fell $19.9 billion (0.1 percent), while personal consumption expenditures rose $111.1 billion (0.5 percent).

The BEA attributed the income decline primarily to a drop in farm proprietors' income, which fell as payments from the federal Farmer Bridge Assistance Program decreased after the program closed application submissions in mid-April. Compensation of employees provided a partial offset, preventing a steeper decline.

The divergence between spending and income pushed the personal saving rate to 2.6 percent, indicating households continued drawing down savings to maintain consumption levels in April. The PCE price index rose 3.8 percent year over year, with the core measure — excluding food and energy — up 3.3 percent, coming in slightly softer than recent readings and somewhat below some forecasts.

The April income result is broadly viewed as a temporary, policy-driven disruption tied to the expiration of specific government support payments rather than a structural shift in household finances.

The community forecast a rise by a 70-30 margin, getting this outcome wrong.