[…] A new report from Fiserv shows a resilient, though far more cautious, American consumer. The April edition of the payments and financial services company’s Small Business Index, published Monday (May 5), shows consumers are spending more on essentials while scaling back discretionary purchases. Small business sales were up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis, with total transactions rising 6.9%, the report showed. Meanwhile, small business restaurant sales showed modest growth year over year at 1.8%, falling 0.1%, though foot traffic grew slightly. The report is the latest in a series of indicators that consumers are focusing more on necessities, something shown last week in Block’S earnings.. New research by PYMNTS examines how people weigh the trade-off between time and money in terms of spending on things like grocery delivery, home maintenance and perscriptions. Read full article […]