Americans’ Spending Set to Slow as Income Dips Below 2019 Trend
- US consumer spending exceeds savings and income, report says
- Real income growth is now slower than pre-pandemic trend
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US consumers are still spending like it’s 2021 — but that will soon change as they run out of cash, according to a report from the Brookings Institution.
Real income growth has slowed to levels below the pre-pandemic trend, according to the report published Tuesday by Wendy Edelberg, director of the Hamilton Project, and Sofoklis Goulas, a fellow at the Brookings-led think tank. Meanwhile, consumers kept their spending habits from a couple of years ago, when forced inactivity and Covid government support payments bolstered their savings.