Credit and debit card spending rose 6.3% in June, its fastest growth in four years, spanning all income groups and both services and retail.
Krisberg noted that wage growth for the lowest earners jumped a full percentage point to 4.1%, effectively closing the gap with the highest earners at 4.2%.
Job change is the main driver behind that wage increase, as changing employers typically generates a compounded wage premium beyond the baseline annual increase.
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On CNBC on July 10, Bank of America Institute Director Liz Everett Krisberg summarized the latest Consumer Checkpoint report, saying we’re seeing: “The fastest growth we have seen in four years. But what’s really interesting in the headline beyond that how broad was the force. It wasn’t just a group of consumers. It was all income groups. It wasn’t just a category. “It was services and retail.”
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Credit and debit card spending pink 6.3% in June compared to the previous year, with double digit profits in discretionary services such as leisure and airlines. Lower-income wage growth also jumped a full percentage point to 4.1%practically closing the gap with the 4.2% growth recorded among higher-income consumers. If Krisberg is right, the labor market still favors workers, meaning there might be a better environment today than a year ago for a raise or a new job.
Consumer spending is growing at its fastest pace in four years
Krisberg’s reading aligns with broader consumer data. Retail sales hit 763.7 billion dollars in May 2026, the 12-month high and the 90th percentile of the historical range. Credit card late payments in reality dropped to around 3% in January 2026, so the spending is not financed by people left behind.
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Nonfarm payrolls reached around 159 million in June 2026, the highest reading in the series, and unemployment fell to 4.2% that same month.
However, the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index stood at 44.8 in May 2026, below the 60 line typically associated with a recession. That means people are spending more. While they tell the pollsters they feel worse. Wallets are winning that argument for now, but the gap is worth watching.
Changing jobs is helping workers get bigger raises
Krisberg was clear about an overlooked fact that was driving wage growth: “One of the components that drives this greater salary growth is that we also saw in our data an uptick in the number of people who are changing jobs. And that’s important because typically when people change jobs, they get an increase in their salary and income.”
The math on a job change favors workers. BLS data shows that average hourly earnings increased from $36.36 in June 2025 $37.64 in June 2026. The BofA figure for low-income workers, 4.1%, is the increase that the group as a whole is capturing, with the accelerator being those who changed employers. Historically, job changers get a premium of a few percentage points per move. Job switching also tends to compound with each subsequent raise because future raises are typically calculated from the new income base.
Data on personal income indicate durability. Salaries and salaries reached $13,246.2 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up from $12,149.5 billion two years earlier. The savings rate fell from 6.2% to 3.9%. over that same window, meaning more of every paycheck goes out the door. This is a warning sign if wage growth stagnates, but not while wages continue to exceed core PCE inflation.
Your Industry Determines Whether the Job Hopping Boom Applies to You
Whether you benefit depends on how liquid the labor market is in your industry. In sectors with high turnoversuch as leisure, food services, healthcare and warehouse logistics, employers are actively bidding for workers and a change can quickly mean a significant increase.
In sectors with thinner listingslike niche manufacturing, government, and much of higher education, the same move could take a year and generate a smaller premium.
Was the World Cup responsible for the increase in spending in June?
The general strength of spending and the convergence of lower-income wages show strength for the consumer. Credit and debit card spending grew 6.3% In June, lower-income wage growth accelerated to 4.1%and the salaries of the highest earners increased 4.2%.
July spending data will show whether June represented a lasting acceleration or a World Cup-aided spike. For now, widespread spending and converging wage growth indicate that workers are still willing to move and that employers are still paying them more to do so.
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