[Excerpt] Average annual expenditures per consumer unit (CU) were essentially unchanged in 2003, rising just 0.3 percent over the previous year, from $40,677 to $40,817. The increase in spending in 2003 was less than the 2.3-percent annual average rise in general price levels over the year, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Spending rose 3.9 percent in 2001 and 2.9 percent in 2002. This report shows the latest results from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE).