Since 2020, the global economy has sat on pins and needles as the fallout from COVID-19 rippled through 2021, 2022 and 2023. But the resilience of the American consumer prevented an all-out economic disaster. Time and time again, consumers kept the economy chugging along despite the bleak forecasts from leading economists. Early on, they were powered by pandemic relief checks from the U.S. Treasury, but even as that money faded, lockdowns hurt retailers and inflation took hold, consumers took it in stride and kept spending.
