Household Absorption
Indicator Study | Active | As of 2026-05-01 | Freshness 76d
Household Absorption is 'active' with a composite score of 60.8. The hottest components are Income strain 65.9, Debt-service pressure 64.9.
60.78
Score
76 day(s)
Freshness
2026-05-01
As Of
Component Scores
| Component | Score |
|---|---|
| Income strain | 65.87 |
| Spending strain | 52.17 |
| Debt-service pressure | 64.88 |
Current Drivers
| Driver | Component | Score | Raw | Transformed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer sentiment | Income strain | 73.29 | 44.80 | -53.00 |
| Household debt service ratio | Debt-service pressure | 64.88 | 11.16 | 11.16 |
| Real personal consumption expenditures | Spending strain | 60.77 | 16773.40 | -2.13 |
| Real disposable personal income | Income strain | 58.45 | 17983.80 | -0.02 |
| Real retail sales | Spending strain | 43.56 | 228669.00 | -2.60 |
Metrics
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Score | 60.78 |
| Freshness Days | 76 |
| Panel As Of Date | 2026-05-01 |
| Source As Of Date | 2026-05-01 |
Charts
Component contribution bars
Higher scores indicate more replacement pressure or fragility for this study.
Normalized history panel
All lines are scored on the same 0-100 scale using trailing z-scores on a weekly Friday panel.
Notes
- Higher scores mean households are absorbing less of the shock through income and spending, and more through strain.
- This study deliberately scores fragility, not resilience, so that it rolls cleanly into the fragility composite.
- Mechanism note: If AI-linked disruption is becoming macro-relevant, it should eventually leak into slower real income growth, weaker spending follow-through, and tighter household cash-flow tolerance.
- Freshness: the stalest source series in this study is 76 day(s) old.
Commentary
Household Absorption is active with a composite score of 60.8, driven by Income strain (65.9) and Debt-service pressure (64.9).
- Composite score 60.8 (panel as of 2026-05-01, 76 days fresh) – near its recent high after hovering around 50 in early 2023.
- Income strain component 65.9 and Debt-service pressure component 64.9 are the leading contributors.
- Data freshness is 76 days; scores are derived from UMCSENT, TDSP, PCEC96, DSPIC96, and RRSFS.
Caveat: The composite index blends diverse indicators and can be volatile; a short-term rise does not necessarily indicate a durable shift in household absorption.