Economics
Virus Rips Into Middle-Class America, Where Finances Are Fragile
- Middle 60%’s share of national wealth is now below one quarter
- Cash buffers are higher, but debt quality has deteriorated
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The coronavirus is set to overwhelm the precarious finances of America’s middle class, a group that’s seen its share of the national wealth decline steadily since the last financial crisis in 2008.
Economic activity has collapsed in the past few weeks as Americans stop traveling and shopping, business revenues plummet and millions are thrown out of work. The country’s middle-income group is likely ill-prepared for such a shock, according to the latest update of household-finance data from the Federal Reserve.