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Consumer optimism in the United States remained steady over the summer, while consumer spending saw a modest uptick across most categories. Here’s the latest research from our ConsumerWise team.
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GLOMcKinsey article looks into spending paterns of the US cosumer over summer 2023. Read in full
Key conclusions:
- American consumers remained cautiously optimistic.
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- Inflation dipped and consumers spent. As inflation continued to cool, both real and nominal spending increased slightly from the previous year. The real year-over-year spending change rate continued to hover around 3 percent for the second consecutive month, up from around 1 percent in May 2023. Among the segments we track, the two with the largest real year-over-year spending increases were out-of-home entertainment and cosmetic stores, which showed a 12 percent and 13 percent increase, respectively, in real spending compared with the year prior. This was followed closely by the travel segment, which experienced an 11 percent year-over-year increase in real spending.
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- Younger consumers wanted to splurge.The gaps in spending growth between high-income and low-income consumers, boomers and Gen Z, and everyone in between narrowed over the summer.
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- Food and travel topped the list. Food and travel continued to be splurge-worthy categories among US consumers. Over the summer, 40 percent of Gen Z and millennials reported an intent to splurge on restaurants, while 45 percent of boomers said they intended to splurge on travel, more than any other category for that age group.
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Source: McKinsey
