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In a statement to MarketWatch, White House spokesman Kush Desai said: “In addition to tariffs, the Trump administration is slashing regulations and unleashing American energy — policies that are saving American families hundreds of billions of dollars. The March inflation report, which showed the first drop in prices in years, proves that we can both address decades of unfair foreign trade practices and deliver price relief for the American people at the same time.”Though consumer prices haven’t increased significantly during Trump’s first 100 days, there are some signs of declining consumer health and waning confidence, as delinquencies edged up year over year and savings rates increased — which could be a sign that consumers are cutting back.Meanwhile, consumer prices ticked up by 0.2% in February on a monthly basis before decreasing by 0.1% in March as energy prices fell, according to the most recent statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.One-hundred days into Trump’s second administration, how are Americans’ finances doing? Many watched in dismay as Trump’s tariff announcements erased trillions of dollars in household wealth and whittled their 401(k) balances , leading some to hit the brakes on big purchases such as homes and cars.Despite ongoing stock-market volatility triggered by tariff announcements, Trump’s first months in office have largely been a waiting period in terms of consumer prices, with many costs holding fairly steady as companies sell existing “pretariff” inventory and wait to see where trade negotiations eventually land.Presidents have little direct control over consumer prices and interest rates. But Trump’s signature economic policy in his first 100 days in office — sweeping global tariffs, which remain under negotiation — stands to increase consumer prices across the board if it takes full effect in the coming months and companies pass along their higher costs to shoppers.After years of high inflation, President Donald Trump won back the White House on a promise to lower prices and improve Americans’ personal finances. “As president, I’m fighting every day to … make America affordable again,” he said in his joint address to Congress in March.Story ContinuesEconomists warn of the growing risk that tariff-related inflation will prevent the Federal Reserve from lowering interest rates, which would hamper economic growth and possibly lead to a recession. Middle- and low-income consumers, many of whom are stretched thin financially, already say they are cutting back on nonessential spending in anticipation of tariffs.“The president could still turn this around,” Moody’s Analytics Chief Economist Mark Zandi told MarketWatch. “If he finds an off-ramp and is able to scale back or backtrack on those tariffs, we could get by without a recession.”Here’s a snapshot of how several closely watched measures of consumers’ household expenses and borrowing costs have moved since Trump was inaugurated on Jan

With high inflation hitting American shoppers, many are turning to BNPL to manage paychecks. (Photo. More by Scott Olson/Getty Images) Getty ImagesAmerican shoppers are increasingly using buy now, pay later loans (BNPLs) to buy groceries, and more people are paying those bills late, according to a spending intentions survey from Lending Tree released Friday.The findings are just the latest in a long line of stories suggesting that consumers, already under the cosh from persistent inflation, are feeling the weight of an uncertain economy, high interest rates and worries over the impact of tariffs, are having trouble affording the basics such as their weekly groceries.The survey was conducted between April 2-3 and took in the responses from 2,000 U.S. consumers aged 18-79-years-old. Around half reported that they had used BNPL loans and of those consumers, a quarter said they were using BNPL to purchase groceries, a figure up from 14% in 2024 and 21% in 2023.Meanwhile, 41% of respondents said that they had made a late payment on a BNPL loan in the past 12 months, up from 34% in the year prior.The loans, which allow consumers to split purchases into, typically, three smaller payments, have emerged as a popular alternative to credit cards because they often do not charge interest so long as the payments are paid on time and in full.However, they have courted controversy as a financing option because consumers can be stung by high fees if they miss payments. In addition, there is less financial control from the authorities over the sector, which have also come in for criticism.Multiple BNPL Loans UsedIn Lending Tree’s survey, 60% of BNPL users said that they had used multiple loans at once, while nearly a quarter said that they have held three or more loans at one time.Apparel, including shoes and accessories, is the item most commonly bought with a buy now, pay later loan, but technology devices and home decor is not far behind.PayPal is the most commonly used BNPL lender, utilized by 56% of the BNPL users in the survey