The US economy exits 2025 with one phrase defining consumers — K-shaped. This year, the division between the economic haves and have nots widened, with sentiment souring as those in the middle of the income distribution were pressured by a softening labor market and feared inflation resulting from tariffs. As of November, the unemployment rate stood at a four-year high of 4.6%. The University of Michigan's final consumer sentiment reading of the year found that nearly two-thirds of respondents expect un ...