December 2024
Recapping 2024: Key insights and FAQs
As this year comes to a close, we look back at the economic themes and trends that shaped 2024.
Key takeaways
- Bank of America Institute is dedicated to uncovering powerful insights that move business and society forward. This year, we have delivered over 85 publications across our three pillars: Economic Insights, Sustainability and Transformation.
- For the consumer, 2024 has been a year of resilience, with solid growth in card spending backed up by robust after-tax wage and salary growth, according to Bank of America internal data. Even so, we have found that, confronted with high inflation, some consumers have been trading down to value or discount goods.
- We also saw a fairly healthy labor market this year. Workers are still receiving meaningful pay increases when changing jobs, albeit the increases are in the single-digits rather than the double digits. And, small business hiring still remains above 2019 levels, according to our data.
- From the state of the consumer and businesses to the housing market and technological innovations, our 2024 year in review examines important questions and serves as a reflection of key trends.
Read our full analysis for a more in-depth look at these trends.
