The American shopping spree is losing steam
CNN
It’s becoming tougher and tougher for Americans to carry on with their spending spree.
It’s becoming tougher and tougher for Americans to carry on with their spending spree. Years of elevated inflation and the highest interest rates in almost a quarter century are wearing out the US consumer. Savings accumulated during the Covid-19 pandemic are drying up, borrowers continue to rack up debt and delinquencies are marching higher. Retailers say shoppers are fed up with rising prices and are changing their purchasing behavior. Americans power economic growth with their spending, and they’re being buffeted from every direction. US consumers unleashed a tsunami of demand when the economy ascended from pandemic depths. That momentum persisted last year as Americans gladly opened their wallets, selling out high-profile concerts and breaking travel records, which also staved off a widely anticipated recession. Such exuberance is being kept alive by America’s solid job market, with sub-4% unemployment, nearly two million job openings more than unemployed people seeking work and wages that are outpacing inflation. The job market is proving to be the US economy’s saving grace, but it is unmistakable that Americans are feeling pinched. Once that shoe drops, it could cause an earthquake for the world’s biggest economy.
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