Personal income continued to grow slowly in third quarter 1990

Personal income in the US grew 1.2% in 3rd-quarter 1990, about as much as in the 2nd quarter but substantially less than in the first quarter. The slow 3rd-quarter growth in personal income was particularly noticeable in the Plains region, where farm income fell, and in New England, where nonfarm income was weak. Growth was a little below the US average in the Rocky Mountain region, equal to the average in the Mideast and Great Lake regions, and above average in the Southeast, Southwest, and Far West regions. In recent quarters, the pattern of income growth in New England and the Southwest has been different from that in most of the 1980s. In New England, income has grown slower than the US average for the past 7 quarters, after having grown more rapidly than average during the past decade.