The following is the unedited transcript of the news release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the U.S. Commerce Department.


PERSONAL INCOME AND OUTLAYS: DECEMBER 2005

Personal income increased $41.1 billion, or 0.4 percent, and disposable personal income (DPI) increased $35.5 billion, or 0.4 percent, in December, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $80.2 billion, or 0.9 percent. In November, personal income increased $44.6 billion, or 0.4 percent, DPI increased $39.0 billion,or 0.4 percent, and PCE increased $48.6 billion, or 0.5 percent, based on revised estimates.

Wages and salaries

Private wage and salary disbursements increased $14.6 billion in December, compared with an increase of $16.0 billion in November. Goods-producing industries'' payrolls increased $1.8 billion, compared with an increase of $1.2 billion; manufacturing payrolls increased $0.5 billion, in contrast to a decrease of $1.0 billion. Services-producing industries'' payrolls increased $12.9 billion, compared with an increase of $14.7 billion. Government wage and salary disbursements increased $1.7 billion, compared with an increase of $1.8 billion.

Other personal income

Supplements to wages and salaries increased $3.6 billion in December, compared with an increase of $4.0 billion in November.

Proprietors'' income increased $1.1 billion in December, compared with an increase of $5.6 billion in November. Farm proprietors' income increased $0.3 billion, the same increase as in
November. Nonfarm proprietors' income increased $0.8 billion, compared with an increase of
$5.3 billion.

Rental income of persons decreased $3.5 billion in December, in contrast to an increase of $3.6 billion in November. Personal income receipts on assets (personal interest income plus personal dividend income) increased $16.7 billion, the same increase as in November.

Personal current transfer receipts increased $8.3 billion in December, in contrast to a decrease of $1.0 billion in November. The December increase in personal current transfer receipts reflected retroactive social security benefit payments of $6.5 billion at an annual rate, resulting from a recalculation of the earnings base underlying the benefits for recent retirees.

Contributions for government social insurance -- a subtraction in calculating personal income -- increased $1.5 billion in December, compared with an increase of $1.9 billion in November.

Personal current taxes and disposable personal income

Personal current taxes increased $5.4 billion in December, compared with an increase of $5.7 billion in November. Disposable personal income (DPI) -- personal income less personal current taxes -- increased $35.5 billion, or 0.4 percent, in December, compared with an increase of $39.0 billion, or 0.4 percent, in November.

Personal outlays and personal saving

Personal outlays -- PCE, personal interest payments, and personal current transfer payments increased $81.3 billion in December, compared with an increase of $49.8 billion in November. PCE increased $80.2 billion, compared with an increase of $48.6 billion.

Personal saving -- DPI less personal outlays -- was a negative $67.4 billion in December, compared with a negative $21.6 billion in November. Personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income was a negative 0.7 percent in December, compared with a negative 0.2 percent in November. Negative personal saving reflects personal outlays that exceed disposable personal income. Saving from current income may be near zero or negative when outlays are financed by borrowing (including borrowing financed through credit cards or home equity loans), by selling investments or other assets, or by using savings from previous periods.

Real DPI and real PCE

Real DPI -- DPI adjusted to remove price changes -- increased 0.4 percent in December,
compared with an increase of 0.8 percent in November.