美国心态

OCTOBER 2025 M E T H O D O L O G Y ABOUT THIS STUDY Survey Methodology •The survey was conducted bydentsuviaToluna, an onlineresearch panel.•Administered on October 21st, 2025.•Distributed among a random sample of 1,000 U.S.respondents 18 years of age or older.•Controls for nationally representative weighting acrossage, gender, region, race and ethnicity (using the latestpublicly available U.S. Census numbers) E X E C U T I V ES U M M A R Y WHERE WE’VE BEEN: THE PAST FOUR WAVES SEPTEMBER JULY OCTOBER AUGUST CONTINUED UNCERTAINTY. CAUTIOUS STABILIZATION WITHPERSISTENT DIVIDES. A STEADILY BLEAK PRESENTDOESN’T UNDERMINE OPTIMISMTOWARDS THE FUTURE WARY TODAY, CAUTIOUSLYOPTIMISTIC TOMORROW. •Economic sentiment showsminimal movement, withAmericans maintaining recessionfears.•Nearly three-quarters continueplanning spending changes dueto tariff concerns, signalingpersistent uncertainty abouttrade policy impacts.•Consumers continue to makestrategic spending decisions—aggressive cuts to foodspending and trading down onessentials while protectingother discretionary categories,such as fitness or electronics. •Economic sentiment showsminimal movement, however,future optimism jumps 5 pointsto 42%.•54% of consumers can afford allmonthly expenses (up 5 points),driven by middle-incomehouseholds.•Post-summer normalization seestargeted cuts across bothdiscretionary expenses andessentials.•Continued protection of valuedcategories like travel, signalingcalculated bets rather thanpanic cuts. •Economic anxiety begins to cool,but Americans remain splitbetween those finding financialrelief and those facingintensifying pressure.•Personal financial outlooksdiverge between improvementversus deterioration.•Consumer spending revealssophisticated prioritymanagement-protectingvalued discretionary categorieswhile aggressively trading downon essentials. •Economic sentiment continuesto be negative, but consumers’outlook is optimistic.•51% of consumers can afford allmonthly expenses (down 3points), driven by high-incomehouseholds.•Looming end-of-year expensesinspire targeted cuts acrossboth discretionary expenses andessentials.•Soaring food prices inspire cutson grocery and diningcategories. VIEWS ON THEECONOMY VS.LIVED EXPERIENCE ECONOMIC SENTIMENT STEADILY NEGATIVE AMID WARNING SIGNS. Economic sentiment appears largely unchanged from August, with 62% viewing the economy negatively and 38% viewing the economypositively. Americansappear to be processing a series of warning signs—a cooling labor market, rising inflation, and policy uncertainty—with wariness. HALF OF AMERICANS STILL BELIEVE RECESSION IS HERE. Even though there's been no official recession since 2020, half of Americans still believe the US economy is in one. It's a reminder that perception often mattersmore than reality when it comes to how people make spending decisions. SENTIMENT ABOUT PERSONAL FINANCES WORSENS. Sentiment is in slight decline compared to September, and consumers’ ability to afford their monthly expenses is also in decline. ROLLING 3-MONTH AVERAGE:SENTIMENT ABOUT PERSONAL FINANCES ROLLING 3-MONTH AVERAGE: AFFORDINGMONTHLY EXPENSES IN PAST 30 DAYS HIGH INCOME HOUSEHOLDS FAIR BETTER IN THE FALL Low earners lost3points to38% affordability, middle earners only lost 1, while high earners improved3points to81%, continuing the positive trend experiencedin September. The inequality gap is widening again,with end-of-yearexpenses looming on the horizon. SPENDING CONTINUES TO RETREAT AS FALL UNFURLS. In September, people cut back across the board as the summer came to an end—both on fun stuff like dining out and travel, and on necessities like groceries andhousehold items. The cutbacks continue steadily into the month of October–although cut-backs on dining out seem to be easing. RESTAURANTS HIT HARDEST BY CONSUMERS’ CUTBACKS. Dining out has the biggest spending drop at-19%, followed by household necessities at-16% and groceries and fast food both at-15%. Foodprices soaredinSeptember, and people may be responding by eating out less and being more careful about grocery spending. CATEGORY PURCHASERS WHO HAVE DONE THE FOLLOWING IN THE PAST 30 DAYS Reduced my spending or delayed a purchase. CONSUMERS CUT CORNERS ON BASICS TO AFFORD PREMIUMS. The biggest trading down is happening with groceries and household necessities., while travel and luxury spending patterns are more neutral. This showsconsumers are being strategic—they're buying cheaper versions of everyday stuff while less likely to compromise on premiums theyvalue. OUTLOOK ONWHAT LIES AHEAD 4 IN 10 AMERICANS THINK THE ECONOMY WILL IMPROVE Future economic optimism is consistent at 42% of people expecting things to get better over the next year. The increase seencompared to August suggestsAmericans in the fall might have started to believe that current economic uncertainty is temporary rather than the new permanentreality. YOUNGER GENERATIONS DRIVE THE OPTIMISM INCREASE. Millenni