Feel the Squeeze: Higher Rates, Inflation to Weigh on US Borrowers, Experts Warn

At her lowest point, the author made a promise: "I would pay back all of the debt no matter how long it took or what I had to do, if I could only keep my family and my home." fizkes/Shutterstock

The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates for the first time since 2018, with six more rate hikes planned for 2022. The central bank’s tightening could have a considerable effect on U.S. borrowers and consumer spending trends moving forward, experts say.

U.S. consumers could be challenged by a broad array of “brisk headwinds that only seem set to intensify” in the coming months, according to Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West.