By David Harrison 

Americans curbed their spending increases in June, a sign weak wage growth might be weighing on consumers.

Personal spending, which measures what consumers spend on everything from doughnuts to dishwashers, rose 0.2% from a month earlier, the smallest gain since February, the Commerce Department said Monday. In May, spending rose a revised 0.7%.

Personal income, which includes wages and government aid, climbed 0.4% in June after rising a revised 0.4% in May. Both June figures came in as expected by economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal.

The Commerce Department said last week that inflation-adjusted consumer consumption rose at an annualized rate of 2.9% in the second quarter, contributing to a bounceback in gross domestic product following a disappointing winter.

But wage growth slowed unexpectedly in the second quarter, which could have damped Americans' enthusiasm to spend.

Analysts said the low spending numbers could be a sign of concern.

"These latest figures set up a soft trajectory for consumer spending heading into the third quarter," Daniel Silver of J.P. Morgan wrote in a note to clients.

Joshua Shapiro, chief U.S. economist at MFR, pointed to demographic factors: "We expect spending gains to lag income growth as an aging population seeks to boost retirement savings and also struggles with healthcare costs," he wrote.

Businesses have also flagged a reluctance among consumers to pull out their wallets.

On an earnings call last month, J.J. Buettgen, chief executive of casual-dining chain Ruby Tuesday Inc., cited "relative weakness" in some parts of the country partly due to "relatively soft consumer spending."

"We've seen it in our business," he said.

Meanwhile, consumer prices rose slightly in June, the Commerce Department said Monday. Prices grew 0.2% from May, as measured by the personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge. Prices were up 0.3% from a year earlier. Inflation has now run below the Fed's 2% target for more than three years.

Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices climbed 0.1% from May and 1.3% from a year earlier.

Fed officials are paying especially close attention to the labor market and to inflation as they consider raising short-term interest rates from near zero, where they have stayed since 2008. Fed officials have said they want to be "reasonably confident" that inflation is moving back toward the 2% level before they move. Many economists believe the Fed will raise rates in September.

Lower oil prices and a strong dollar have kept inflation in check in recent months. The trend has been toward slower inflation growth, with the 12-month inflation increase lower than it was in May 2014, when it hit 1.8%.

Monday's inflation reading could be cause for concern about a rate increase in the near term, but the weakness in price increases appears to have stabilized.

Michael Gapen, chief U.S. economist at Barclays, said Monday's price data suggest the effect of lower oil prices is moderating, which could lead to higher inflation readings in the coming months.

"We read the PCE inflation report as suggesting the data have cleared another hurdle for a September rate hike," he said.

Fed officials say they think the slowdown will be temporary. Speaking to lawmakers last month, Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen said she expects inflation to pick up "over the medium term" as oil prices stabilize.

Ms. Yellen also said she expects lower oil prices and a robust job market to eventually lead to greater consumer spending growth, a critical component of overall gross domestic product.