WASHINGTON, April 30 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer spending fell in March after two months of straight increases as shrinking payrolls and falling asset prices squeezed incomes, a government report showed on Thursday.
The Commerce Department said spending fell 0.2 percent after a revised 0.4 percent increase in February, previously reported as a 0.2 percent rise.
Personal income slipped 0.3 percent after declining by an unrevised 0.2 percent in February. Personal income has declined in five of the last six months.
Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast spending to ease by 0.1 percent and incomes to fall 0.2 percent.
Savings increased to an annual rate of $455.3 billion. The savings rate climbed to 4.2 percent in March from 4 percent the previous month.
Inflation was moderate in March, with the personal consumption expenditures price index, excluding food and energy, steady at 1.8 percent on a year-over-year basis for the second month in a row. (Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Neil Stempleman)