Personal income is the estimated dollar amount of income received by Americans. Personal spending is the estimated dollar amount that consumer use for purchases of durable and non-durable goods and services.

This economic number is important because if consumers are spending more than they make eventually the spending will stop thus causing a downturn in the economy. Another aspect to consider is consumer who save maybe investing in the markets and that can increase the value of stock prices. In addition it can also add liquidity to the banking system if the money goes to savings or money market accounts.