Biden says the economy is on a 'winning streak' as new data shows pay going up and inflation slowing down

Even more good economic data rolled in on Friday, a positive sign for the White House and economy.

Americans' incomes grew more than the cost of goods and services, according to the Commerce Department.

President Joe Biden said it's part of a "winning streak" for Americans.

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The White House's Christmas present came early, as more optimistic economic data rolled in ahead of the new year.

Incomes grew while inflation slowed in November, according to the Commerce Department. The Bureau of Economic Analysis's personal consumption expenditures (PCE), which tracks how much Americans are spending on goods and services, rose by 5.5% year-over-year in November — a deceleration from the 6% increase in October. PCE is a key gauge for the Federal Reserve in its fight against inflation, so the 0.1% increase from October to November is a good sign.

At the same time, personal income rose by 0.4% from October, meaning Americans' wage gains were slightly outpacing rising prices. Americans were also able to save more, with the personal saving rate rising to 2.4% from 2.2%, although still far below previous pandemic highs and pre-pandemic savings levels.

"Once again, we are seeing signs of our economy recovering and remaining resilient. Today's report shows that incomes are up and inflation is coming down – while our job market remains strong," Biden said in a statement. "Christmas arrives with gas prices down and grocery store prices showing the lowest increase in a year. Coming the day after we saw unemployment claims remain low and estimates of economic growth revised upward, it is a winning streak for America's families, businesses, and farmers."

This data comes on the heels of positive economic trends the economy has seen as the year came to a close. The Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation, rose 7.1% year-over-year in November — a decrease from the 7.7% reading the month prior — and the Federal Reserve responded by slowing down its pace of interest rate increases to 50 basis points in December, following four consecutive hikes of 75 points.

While Biden is touting these positive trends and remains optimistic about the state of the economy in the year ahead, inflation still remains well above its pre-pandemic levels of 2%.

"There will be more ups and downs in the year ahead, but we are making progress building an economy from the bottom up and the middle out and I'm optimistic for the year ahead," Biden said.

The economy is heading in the right direction, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell has noted there is still work to be done to lower prices for Americans, and they might be in for some pain in the year ahead as the Fed continues to hike interest rates.

"We continue to anticipate that ongoing [interest rate] increases will be appropriate in order to attain a stance of monetary policy that is sufficiently restrictive to return inflation to 2% over time," Powell said during a December press conference.

He added that it'll take "substantially more evidence to give confidence that inflation is on a sustained downward path."

Still, as questions on whether there will be a recession — and how bad it will be — loom, Powell and other top administration officials believe there's still a path to fight inflation while avoiding a severe economic downturn, given the promising labor market trends.

"I believe inflation will be lower," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told 60 Minutes earlier this month. "I am very hopeful that the labor market will remain quite healthy so that people can feel good about their finances and their personal economic situation."