Bank of America’s Moynihan Says Consumers Are Still Spending Despite Affordability Pain

According to Axios, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said resilient consumers are still putting money into the U.S. economy despite affordability pressures, and he estimated consumer spending rose about 6% in the second quarter from a year earlier. He said that pace led him to predict the economy will grow at least 2% this year. Moynihan also said World Cup host cities saw brick-and-mortar spending at restaurants and bars rise 5.3% year over year in the three weeks ending June 27, compared with 3.8% in the rest of the U.S., based on Bank of America research and aggregated card data. On the Federal Reserve, he said he expects continuity rather than disruption from Fed Chair Kevin Warsh and called the U.S. economy “not a central bank-led economy.”