Consumer spending in the United States grew in May as Americans used gains in income to shore up household finances.

Fewer Americans filed applications for unemployment benefits last week, a sign of steady progress in the labor market.

The Commerce Department opened the door to more U.S. oil exports as long as the crude is lightly processed, tempering the impact of a law that has banned most such shipments for the past 40 years.

Orders for U.S. business equipment climbed in May, showing corporate investment is helping revive the economy after a slump at the start of the year.

Sales of new homes increased 18.6% in May, the biggest one-month gain since January 1992, to a 504,000 annualized pace, figures from the Commerce Department showed June 24 in Washington.

The Conference Board’s index of U.S. consumer confidence increased to 85.2 in June from 82.2 a month earlier, the New York-based private research group said.

Home prices in 20 U.S. cities rose at a slower pace than forecast in the year ended in April as declining affordability put a lid on appreciation.

The average price for regular gasoline at U.S. pumps climbed 1.87 cents in the past two weeks to $3.71 a gallon, according to Lundberg Survey Inc.

Purchases of previously owned U.S. homes rose more than projected in May, a sign the industry is stabilizing after a weather-depressed quarter.