Kraft, McDonald's and Whirlpool Warn US Shoppers Are Running Out of Money as Saving Rate Hits 2.7%
Updated
Updated · Yahoo Finance · Aug 16
Kraft, McDonald's and Whirlpool Warn US Shoppers Are Running Out of Money as Saving Rate Hits 2.7%
1 articles · Updated · Yahoo Finance · Aug 16
Summary
Kraft Heinz CEO Steve Cahillane said lower-income consumers are "literally running out of money" by month-end, with some households posting negative cash flow and dipping into savings.
Kraft is responding by cutting prices, expanding promotions and offering smaller pack sizes after years of "volume degradation" from repeated price increases that consumers could no longer absorb.
McDonald's and Whirlpool flagged the same strain: McDonald's said higher gas prices are driving lower-income customers to pull back, while Whirlpool described recession-level contractions and roughly 15% weaker discretionary demand.
Household balance-sheet data point the same way, with US credit-card balances at $1.25 trillion in Q1 2026, auto loans at $1.69 trillion, and the personal saving rate down to 2.7% in June.