Economists are cautiously thinking it might be…
Personal income was up a remarkable 10 percent in January, the Commerce Department reported on Friday, but the increase was almost entirely attributable to the $600 government relief checks and unemployment insurance payments.
Spending last month increased by a healthy 2.4 percent, largely because of purchases of goods, while purchases of services lagged as the pandemic continued to weigh on the leisure and hospitality industries.
It was the biggest jump in personal income since April, when the figure rose by 12.4 percent, lifted by nearly $3 trillion in government transfer payments. That was mostly in the form of $1,200 checks that millions of households received from the federal government….
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On Thursday, John C. Williams, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, said he felt that a recovery could be achieved without inflationary worries.
“Fiscal support, combined with highly favorable financial conditions and steady progress on vaccinations, are all reasons to be optimistic the economy will experience a strong recovery this year,” he said in a speech. “With our economy and the global economy still far below full strength, I expect underlying inflationary pressures to remain subdued for some time.”….