Global investment banks are deploying their tremendous financial resources to fend off fresh competition from fintech companies. The banks’ responses to our survey show they are alert to the threat of new entrants disintermediating their revenue streams, are enhancing their technology platforms, and have the scale, talent and capital to compete in an increasingly digital marketplace.

In our new report, The State of the Mexican Consumer, we discuss how households in Mexico are unlikely to ramp up spending this year amid low credit availability. Also, consumer confidence in future economic conditions is declining, while employment growth remains sluggish.

Household debt in the US reached a 14-year high of $14.15 trillion at the end of 2019, but its share of GDP has been declining. While debt raises households' vulnerability to falling incomes or rising interest rates, the impact on consumption and growth in the event of an economic downturn is likely to be less pronounced than in the recent past.

Women in the US have strengthened their earning power as a result of increased higher education attainment. But they also have larger student debt burdens than do men and slower loan repayment rates, a potential source of financial fragility.