富裕的美國人正在消費，而貧窮的人卻在苦苦掙扎。 (3/3)

 Recently the New York Times reported the following:

Wealthy Americans Are Spending. People With Less Are Struggling. (3/3)

Data show a resilient economy. But that largely reflects spending by the rich, while others pull back amid high prices and a weakening labor market.

By Ben Casselman and Colby Smith

Oct. 19, 2025

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The divergence creates two sources of fragility, warned Dhiren Patki, an author of the Boston Fed study. With so much riding on high earners, the economy could suffer if stock prices fall or some other shock leads them to pare their spending. And lower-income households are already stressed financially, leaving them vulnerable if the labor market weakens further.

The bifurcated picture is a challenge for policymakers at the Federal Reserve. Strong consumer demand could keep pressure on prices while tariffs are fueling concerns about inflation. But if the central bank keeps interest rates high to fight inflation, cracks forming in the labor market could widen.

The unemployment rate has crept higher in recent months but remains relatively low at 4.3 percent in August — the most recent data available because the federal government shutdown delayed the release of September figures. Hiring has slowed drastically in recent months, but companies, for the most part, are holding on to workers.

If companies begin making widespread cuts, the consumer picture could darken quickly, warned Michelle Meyer, chief economist at Mastercard.

“If we actually see an increase in firing rates, if you see an increase in the unemployment rate, if you see wages really start to slow in a meaningful way, then I think that even if household balance sheets are still supported, the story line changes very rapidly,” she said.

For people who are out of work, finding a job has already gotten far more difficult. Nearly two million Americans are considered long-term unemployed, the highest since the pandemic. And joblessness has risen sharply for Black workers, recent graduates and other groups that are often the first to feel the effects of a weakening labor market.

This month, dozens of job seekers packed into a nondescript conference room in the Pilsen neighborhood for a career fair hosted by the National Able Network, a work force development nonprofit based in Chicago.

Some of the attendees had jobs but wanted better opportunities — or were looking for a backup plan amid layoff rumors. Some were recent graduates looking for a foot in the door.

But most had lost jobs, in many cases months or even years before. A social worker laid off when the suicide hotline she worked for lost government funding. A public relations expert who moved back home to Chicago to advance her career, then fell victim to a corporate downsizing. An information-technology specialist who lost a job at Chicago Public Schools more than a year ago and hasn’t worked since.

When Joycelyn Saunders lost her job at a financial services firm in December 2023, she expected to find a new role relatively quickly. She had a bachelor’s degree and years of experience, and had never been out of work for long.

Nearly two years later, Ms. Saunders, 40, showed up to the career fair still looking for a job. She has earned certifications in data analysis, which had seemed like a growth area, but companies are cutting jobs — and those that are hiring are looking for people with experience in that field. She is driving for Uber while applying for jobs — and buying little but food and gas for her car.

“I am just making ends meet, and that’s it,” she said. “I’m not able to save. I’m not able to pay down things on my credit.”

But what about data showing that the economy is still good? That might be true for the people she drops off at downtown hotels, Ms. Saunders said, but not for the people struggling to pay their bills.

“Good for who?” she said. “Listen to the people and what they are saying about what’s happening right now. Even middle-class families are suffering.”

Translation

富裕的美國人正在消費，而貧窮的人卻在苦苦掙扎。 (3/3)

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波士頓聯邦儲備銀行研究報告的作者Dhiren Patki警告說，這種差異造成了兩方面的脆弱性。由於高收入者承擔瞭如此多的負擔，如果股價下跌或其他衝擊導致他們削減支出，經濟可能會受到影響。而低收入家庭已經面臨經濟壓力，如果勞動市場進一步疲軟，他們將更加脆弱。

這種分化的局面對聯準會的政策制定者來說是一個挑戰。強勁的消費需求可能會繼續給物價帶來壓力，而關稅則加劇了人們對通膨的擔憂。但如果央行維持高利率以對抗通膨，勞動市場的裂痕可能會進一步擴大。

近幾個月來，失業率略有上升，但8月的失業率仍維持在4.3%的相對低位 - 這是由於聯邦政府關門推遲了9月數據的發佈，所以這是目前可獲得的最新數據。近幾個月來，招募速度大幅放緩，但大多數企業仍在留住員工。

萬事達卡首席經濟學家Michelle Meyer警告稱，如果企業開始大規模裁員，消費者前景可能會迅速惡化。

她說:“如果我們真的看到解僱率上升，如果看到失業率上升，如果看到工資增長真的開始大幅放緩，那麼我認為，即使家庭資產負債表仍然支撐着，情況也會迅速發生變化。”

對於失業的人來說，找工作已經變得更加困難。近200萬美國人被視為長期失業者，這是自疫情爆發以來的最高水準。黑人工人、應屆畢業生和其他族群的失業率急劇上升，他們往往最先感受到勞動市場疲軟的影響。

本月，數十名求職者擠滿了Pilsen社區一個不起眼的會議室，參加由總部位於芝加哥的勞動力發展非營利組織National Able Network主辦的招聘會。

有些與會者已經有工作，但想要更好的機會 - 或者在裁員傳聞不斷之際尋找後備方案。有些是剛畢業的學生，正在尋找一個入行的機會。

但大多數人是失業的，很多時候是幾個月甚至幾年前的事了。一位社工因她工作的自殺熱線失去政府資助而被解僱。一位公關專家為了職涯發展搬回芝加哥老家，卻又成為公司裁員的犧牲品。一位資訊科技專家一年多前在芝加哥公立學校失業，從此再也沒有工作過。

Joycelyn Saunders在2023年12月失去了在一家金融服務公司的工作，她原本以為能相對較快地找到新工作。她擁有學士學位和多年的工作經驗，從未長時間失業。

近兩年之後，40歲的Saunders女士來到招聘會，仍在尋找工作。她已經獲得了數據分析的認證，這似乎是一個有巨大成長潛力的領域，但公司正在裁員 - 而那些正在招募的公司正在尋找擁有該領域經驗的人才。她在找工作期間一邊為 Uber 開車 - 她除了食物和為車入油外，幾乎不怎麼花錢。

她說:「我只能勉強維持收支平衡，僅此如已」 ;「我無法儲存。我無法償還信用卡欠款」。

但有什麼數據顯示經濟依然良好呢？Saunders女士說，對於那些被她送到市中心酒店的客人來說，這可能沒錯，但對於那些難以支付帳單的人來說，情況並非如此。

她說:「對誰有好處？」; 「聽聽民眾的聲音，聽聽他們對當前情況的看法。即使是中產階級家庭也在熬煎」。

              So, while the divide between rich and poor is hardly new in the US, it has become more pronounced in recent months. Wealthier Americans, buoyed by a stock market that keeps setting records, have continued to spend freely. Lower-income households are stung by persistent inflation and navigating a labor market that is losing momentum and they are struggling.  The top 10 percent of U.S. households now account for nearly half of all spending. Apparently, employment rate has slowed drastically in recent months, but most companies are holding on to workers. If companies begin making widespread cuts, the consumer picture could worsen quickly.