A divide is widening in the US economy as the biggest banks and technology groups shrug off Donald Trump’s tariffs to post huge earnings gains while consumer-facing companies struggle with rising costs.
Blockbuster second-quarter results from the tech groups, including Apple, Meta and Microsoft, and lenders JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs that dominate the S&P 500, paint a picture of a booming economy, supporting the president’s assertion this week that America “is the hottest country anywhere in the world”.
Below the surface, however, large parts of corporate America are grappling with slowing profits and the extreme uncertainty generated by Trump’s aggressive trade war.