, Columnist
Discretion(ary) Is the Better Part of Consumption
Markets see plenty of valor left in the US consumer, but surveys suggest political polarization could create a self-fulfilling drag.
The stock market still believes in the power of the US consumer.
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You just can’t keep the insatiable US consumer down. That, at least, is what you might guess from the stock market, where consumer discretionary stocks — which are cyclical and make much better sales when people feel well off — have dramatically outperformed consumer staples stocks this year. That’s usually regarded as a clear sign of economic expansion. (The following chart is indexed to 100 at the beginning of 2022):