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How Are Americans Spending Their Stimulus Checks?
March 30, 2021
Since the passage of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, more than 100 million stimulus checks have been sent to American households, according to the White House. A recent survey from Refinitiv sought to find out exactly how those households were spending those checks.
As it turns out, the vast majority, eight in ten, were not spending them at all. 48% of respondents said they would save their stimulus money, and 32% said they would use the money to pay down debt.
Only 15% said they were going to spend their money, and just 5% said they would be investing it. For those who do intend to spend, the most common planned uses were groceries, basic living expenses like power and water, and consumer goods like clothing and electronics.
The results may come as a surprise for some analysts who predicted that the wave of stimulus would end up in the equities markets via retail investment platforms like Robinhood.
