US credit card debt hits record $1.1 trillion in March; consumers pulling back on spending.

Are US consumers’ finances seriously stretched?
Over the last few quarters, the largest driver of the US economy has pulled back their spending

In recent months, we have heard a lot of voices pointing out a material (or upcoming) weakness of the US consumers’ finances which may negatively weigh on the GDP growth. Among those voices, there is a lot of noise and data inconsistencies which often mislead market participants and ordinary people. This piece tries to explain most of them, clarifies the misconceptions, and answers key questions regarding this key US economic engine. It is mentioned as the key because as you can see in the graph personal consumption expenditures accounted for 67.7% of the US GDP as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2024.

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