A steady job still gives many consumers confidence, but the latest data shows that confidence alone is no longer enough to keep financial resilience intact. That’s the central takeaway from “Why Job Security No Longer Shields Paycheck-to-Paycheck Consumers,” a June 2026 PYMNTS Intelligence Data Book based on...
Consumers around the world are continuing to make discretionary purchases despite rising prices, according to Visa. Rather than cutting back, consumers are seeking deals, often with the help of digital commerce, the company said in a Tuesday (June 30) press release outlining findings from the Visa Business...
For decades, lenders have treated employment as a proxy for stability. But more Americans are piecing together income from hourly work, contract jobs, commissions and gig platforms that can produce dramatically different paychecks from one week to the next. The trend is reshaping one of...
The number of consumers who refinanced their auto loan in the first quarter nearly doubled compared to the same period two years earlier, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Wednesday (June 24). During the first quarter, the number reached about 111,000, according to the report,...
The most useful signal in consumer spending may not be how Americans feel about the economy. It may be how much room they have to keep moving. That is the practical takeaway from “The Three-Speed Consumer Economy: How Financial Capacity Is Rewriting Spending Behavior,” a...
A notable shift is showing up in the finances of subprime consumers: fewer of them are regularly carrying credit card balances month after month, suggesting a group often seen only through a risk lens is adapting its payment habits in practical ways. That is one...
The old assumption in consumer finance is that when households run short, they turn to their bank. The Wage to Wallet Index, created through joint efforts among PYMNTS Intelligence, WorkWhile and Ingo Payments, suggests something more complex is happening. When essential expenses arrive before income...
As summer begins in the midst of this long holiday weekend kicked off by Juneteenth, the consumer spending outlook appears to contain a contradiction. PYMNTS Intelligence research shows that 83% of consumers say everyday prices increased. Nearly two-thirds say external forces are affecting the U.S....
Stable employment has long been viewed as the primary pathway to financial security. The Wage to Wallet Index suggests that equation is beginning to break down for millions of Americans. According to the report, done in collaboration between PYMNTS Intelligence, WorkWhile and Ingo Payments, Labor...