Inflation refused to fade. American families felt the squeeze in their bank accounts. New government figures show households spending what they once set aside just to cover groceries, gas and rent. The personal savings rate dropped to 2.6 percent in April. That came down from 3.2 percent the month before. A year earlier it stood at 5.8 percent. Such a low reading last appeared in June 2022, during the flush of pandemic stimulus. Outside that unusual period, the rate has almost never sunk this far in the past 65 years. “I thought 2.6% for April was a typo at first. It is so low,” told CNBC Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. “Outside of the revenge spend era of 2022, the personal savings rate has almost never been this low in the past 65 years.” Consumer spending held up. Inflation-adjusted outlays rose 0.1 percent in April. Yet the support came from depleted reserves rather than fresh income.…