Primerica's HBI™ Shows Modest Purchasing Power Gain for Middle-Income Americans in June — Primerica, Inc.

Event summary

Primerica's Household Budget Index™ (HBI™) rose to 100.1% in June, up 1.8% from May and 0.2% year-over-year.
Lower gas prices, along with small declines in healthcare costs and auto insurance rates, drove the increase.
Earned income for middle-income households increased 0.3% month-over-month and 4.0% year-over-year.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.5% year-over-year, while necessity item costs for middle-income Americans increased 4.1%.

The big picture

Primerica's HBI™ provides a focused lens on the economic pressures facing middle-income households, a demographic that drives over 55% of U.S. consumer spending. The index highlights disparities between broad inflation measures like CPI and the specific cost burdens faced by this group. As Primerica continues to track these trends, the data could influence financial product offerings and policy discussions aimed at supporting this critical segment of the economy.

What we're watching

Inflation Trends: Whether the recent decline in gas prices will be sustained and how it affects overall inflation trends for middle-income households.
Wage Growth: The pace at which earned income growth keeps up with rising costs of necessities for middle-income families.
Economic Indicators: How future revisions to the HBI™ data due to updates in CPI and Consumer Expenditure Survey releases impact economic analysis.