But Northern Ireland still has a long way to go to catch up with other parts of the UK when it comes to the actual amount of
discretionary income. It's only 39 per cent of the PS257 enjoyed by people in London and far behind the UK average of PS200.
The income-based repayment amount is 15% of
discretionary income, and pay as you earn is 10%.
The gap between the level of
discretionary incomes in London and those in the rest of the UK has narrowed slightly, from nearly 37% a year ago to just under 36%.
Families had PS146 a week of
discretionary income last month, meaning they were PS1 a week better off than a year ago but compared with November 2010, they are still PS12 a week worse off.
Discretionary income. Another extension of BEA's disposable income would be
discretionary income, which would attempt to measure both the economic welfare of the average household and their ability to spend on big-ticket items over the course of business cycles.
This, combined with weak earnings growth, is putting downward pressure on
discretionary incomes."
It is as clear as day that there will be too few people with the
discretionary income to lodge in these up-market caravansaries.
Still, consumers continue to spend despite a reduction in
discretionary income. Retail properties garnered 17% of all sales in the survey, a one percentage point dip."
"Not only do they have
discretionary income, but they are developing spending habits that will continue after college."
Adults age 50 and over control more than $750 billion of all household
discretionary income; mature consumers outspend young adults by a factor of two to one.
Healthy gains in real household income will boost
discretionary income. With more money in their pockets and greater confidence in their economic future, consumers in Eastern Europe will be increasingly willing to enter into financed high-end purchases.
That allows producers to pay down debt, increase capital spending and enjoy a good deal of
discretionary income. "The industry isn't yet booming, but with current trends we'll see a lot of producers smiling this fall," Orwig said.