The U.S. economic landscape would look even bleaker if not for America's consumers.
The economy slowed in the spring, and many analysts think the weakness will continue in the months ahead. Yet consumer spending, which drives about 70% of growth, accelerated in the April-June quarter at the fastest pace in nearly five years.
Households are showing a willingness to keep spending even in the face of rising anxiety about a possible forthcoming recession. At the same time, though, business investment is weakening in the face of uncertainties created by the increasedaxeshat Presidentonald Trumpas imposed on hundreds of billions of dollars' in imports — goods that many American businesses rely upon.