Car buyers rev up U.S. retail sales in effort to beat tariff price hikes. Economy is still growing.

Sales at retailers rose solidly in July for the second month in a row, but the increase in spending was a double-edged sword: Americans are still confident enough in the economy to spend, but they are ... Read More

Is the U.S. economy beginning to show the effects of Trump’s policies?

The United States is taking in roughly $30 billion a month in tariffs that cover a wide range of products. We discuss whether those tariffs have made their way into prices consumers pay, and how other ... Read More

American consumers are getting nervous about inflation again. For now, they’re still spending

Americans are still opening their wallets, with unemployment remaining low and businesses blunting the effects of President Donald Trump’s widespread tariffs. But consumers remain skittish over ... Read More

McDonald's CEO warns of 'a two-tier economy' as lower-income consumers spend less

The fast-food giant's CEO cited growing evidence that upper-income households are spending freely while the rest are struggling. Read More

‘Sneakflation’: How Trump’s tariffs are gradually raising costs for American consumers

When tariffs are tacked on to many imported goods, someone’s got to foot the bill. According to President Donald Trump, foreign countries and overseas businesses are eating the cost. But evidence ... Read More

This is the one group splurging on summer fun

A previous version of this article inaccurately described Federal Reserve Bank of Boston research on monthly credit-card spending. In an uncertain economic environment, at least one thing is clear: ... Read More

The AI Spending Frenzy Is Propping Up the Real Economy, Too

It’s no secret by now that optimism around the windfall that artificial intelligence may generate is pumping up the stock market. But in recent months, it has also become clear that AI spending is ... Read More