Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said Wednesday that the bank’s internal data paints a picture of a resilient U.S. consumer, even as gasoline prices climb and oil tops $100 a barrel for the first time in months.
Speaking on CNBC’s “Mad Money,” Moynihan said consumer spending remained solid through August, with card and deposit data showing purchases up about 4% from a year earlier. That marks a slight slowdown from the 5% year-over-year growth the bank recorded in the prior quarter, but Moynihan characterized the trend as consistent with a fundamentally strong economy.
“Consumers spent in the month of August about 4% more than they spent last August,” he said. “Last quarter it was 5%, so it’s kicking along. That’s consistent with a strong growing economy.”
The comments come as energy prices have risen sharply through late summer and into September amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran. Brent crude, the international benchmark, topped $100 per barrel on Wednesday. The spike has revived worries that higher costs at the pump could eat into household budgets and crimp discretionary spending heading into the fall.
Investors frequently look to executives at the largest U.S. banks for a near real-time gauge of the economy. With tens of millions of consumer and business accounts, Bank of America’s transactional data offers an early read on spending, wage growth, and credit trends that can complement government statistics.
So far, Moynihan said, the bank sees little reason for concern. “Everything we see is fine,” he said.
On credit, Moynihan pushed back against fears tied to record-high credit-card balances. He argued that those figures need to be viewed in context, given how much the economy has expanded since the financial crisis. “You hear about record outstanding balances of credit cards, but the economy is 40% bigger,” he said. “What you see is a recovery back to trend.”
He added that the bank’s own credit metrics remain strong. “Credit statistics are as good as they’ve been for years,” he said.
Business borrowing holds up
Moynihan also offered an upbeat read on the corporate side of the ledger, saying companies continue to borrow, invest, and draw on their credit lines. He acknowledged, however, that higher interest rates have made financing more expensive, particularly for small and mid-sized businesses that rely on short-term credit facilities.
“That’s the big place” where higher rates are having an impact, he said. Still, he noted, “they’re borrowing. They’re using the lines. The credit quality is good.”
Together, the comments suggest that, at least from the vantage point of one of the country’s largest lenders, the combination of rising energy costs and elevated interest rates has yet to meaningfully dent household or corporate financial health.
Source: www.cnbc.com — https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/09/bank-of-america-ceo-consumer-resilient-despite-rising-gas.html
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