US growth masks deepening divide in jobs, wealth and spending

The US economy is expanding at a pace that would normally silence most critics. GDP is growing at a healthy rate, payrolls continue to rise, and equity markets sit near record highs. But the story that often goes untold is that three-fifths of Americans feel that the country is in recession. The gap between data and lived experience is now large enough to deserve its own analysis. What looks like resilience at the top level reveals a deeper realignment once you look at who owns assets, who drives spending and where jobs are actually being created. Where are the jobs really coming from? Since early 2025, the US economy added roughly 359,000 jobs. Private sector payrolls rose by more than…