Top 10% of Americans Accounted for Almost 50% of Spending in Q2

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Top 10% of Americans Accounted for Almost 50% of Spending in Q2

Chicago, IL, September 17, 2025-"The U.S. economy is running more and more on luxury fuel-the spending power of the wealthy,” reports News Nation.

“Consumers in the top 10% of the income distribution were behind 49.2% of total spending in the second quarter, the highest level in data going back to 1989, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi.

“That share ticked up from 48.5% in the first quarter and is well above the roughly 35% level of the early 1990s, according to Moody’s Analytics’ review of Federal Reserve data, published by Bloomberg.

What is stagflation, and is it coming back? 

“‘Looking at the data, it’s not a mystery why most Americans feel like the economy isn’t working for them,’ Zandi wrote Tuesday on X.

“For those in the bottom 80% of the income distribution-making less than about $175,000 a year-spending has simply kept pace with inflation since the pandemic, Zandi said.

“However, the top 20% of households have fared far better, and those in the top 3.3% of the distribution have done ‘much, much, much better,’ he said.

“The result is a U.S. economy that is largely being powered by the well-to-do-a potential point of weakness.

Rising prices, looming rate cut: Fed faces lose-lose dilemma 

“‘As long as they keep spending, the economy should avoid recession, but if they turn more cautious, for whatever reason, the economy has a big problem,’ Zandi said.

“One thing to keep an eye on: the stock market, where major indexes are hitting fresh highs even as the labor market slows.

“Wall Street’s strength has lifted household wealth-at least on paper-and is keeping affluent Americans confident enough to spend, for now.

“Back on Main Street, many Americans are struggling, facing a one-two punch of higher inflation and weaker job growth as talk of ‘stagflation’ returns.

“The Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point Wednesday in response to the cooling labor market.”