What Fuel Bills? U.S. Consumers Still Spending

Shaking off a middling holiday shopping season and fears of higher heating bills, Americans spent freely in January, the government reported yesterday, providing reassurance that the economy is beginning the new year with fresh strength…

While many economists expect spending increases to slow for the rest of the winter, the strong consumer spending and solid job gains last month helped overcome fears that economic growth was about to stagger under the weight of rising energy costs, higher interest rates and a slowing housing market. The jump in retail sales virtually assures that economic growth, which slowed to just 1.1 percent for the final quarter of 2005, will register a much stronger showing in the first quarter of 2006…

Warmer weather helped bolster inventories of oil, natural gas and other energy sources, pushing down prices