Institute Insights — 08-16-2026

Summary

• Total card spending growth eased to 5.0% year-over-year in July as temporary boosts from online promotion timing and the FIFA World Cup 2026 faded.
• The gap in spending growth between income groups closed as lower-income households' spending accelerated to 5.4% year-over-year.
• After-tax wage growth for lower-income households accelerated to 5.2% year-over-year in July, surpassing higher-income households for the first time since December 2024.
• Consumer financial health remains resilient with more households paying credit card balances in full and little evidence of increased reliance on savings.
• Spending in host cities increased roughly 5% year-over-year during the World Cup, driven by out-of-town visitors whose spending jumped more than 17%.
• Restaurants, bars, hotels, and Kansas City benefited from the influx of fans during the tournament.
• Gen Z spending strengthened in June across beauty, jewelry, coffee, and travel despite having the lowest savings-to-spending ratio of any generation.
• The Northeast overtook the West as the fastest-growing region for spending in June, driven by stronger growth in groceries, gasoline, and utilities.
• Discretionary spending outpaced necessity spending in the West and South, while spending on gasoline, groceries, and housing as a share of income remained stable or declined across most regions except the Northeast and New England.
• About 270,000 small and medium-sized enterprises exported goods in 2023, accounting for roughly one-third of total US goods exports.
• Net dollar inflows for SME exporters have risen significantly over the past two years, particularly in information and manufacturing.