The Average Income and Expenses in the United States
The average family income of the U.S.A. has increased from 20,000 dollars per year in 1992 to 25,000 in 2002. Along with this considerable increase in people’s income, the way in which the average family spends its income has also varied to some extent. The average expenditure of family income is divided into several sectors, namely, housing, clothing, food and drink, transport, medical care, entertainment, savings and other items.
From the table, it is quite interesting to find that the money spent on some sectors such as food and drink (2%) and entertainment (6%) in 1992 and 2002 remains the same. For transport, the percentage of 2000 is only 1% larger than that of 1992. It is also worth mentioning that in 2002, people tend to save less money than in 1992 because people deposit only half the money they used to in 1990. There is a greater increase in the expenses on housing and medical care, increasing by 8% and 6% respectively. On the other hand, people tend to spend less money on clothes, for there is a 5% decrease in 2002 compared with that in 1992. As far as other items are concerned, there is a sharp decrease in the percentage of family income spent on them, accounting for only 7% of the total.
It can be seen from the statistics that in American people’s life food and drink, entertainment and transport had always been important. With family income increasing, American people began to give first priority to housing and medical care, thereby improving their living conditions and invigorating health. By saving less, they presented to us the implication that they expected a fairly secure prospect.