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Personal spending rose 0.7% in February, the largest gain in five months, the Commerce Department said Friday.

The upturn followed a 0.4% gain in January and was higher than economists’ median estimate of a 0.6% rise, Bloomberg News reported.

Personal incomes rose 1.1%, topping economists’ forecast of an 0.8% rise, Bloomberg said.

A rise in consumer spending could increase demand for new factory goods and the trucking shipments that get them to stores.