How it can cost $30 a year to put $100 on a store credit card.

I'm David Brancache.

First, there's word the U.S. economy keeps growing briskly with gross domestic product

in the summer quarter running at a faster than expected, 4.9% annual rate.

If you spent money this summer, this was you at work.

Let's consult Diane Swank, chief economist at the Audit Tax and Advisory Firm KPMG.

Welcome.

Good morning.

More than expected, this is quite a robust showing for what happened in the summer.

It certainly is.

The U.S. economy accelerated over the summer, nearly 5% rate of growth, absolutely stunning

the hottest growth we've seen since the frenzy reopening of 2021, and naturally important

because it certainly is not what we're expecting in the wake of the most aggressive federal reserve

credit tightening cycle since the 1980s.

What happened is consumers, we did see revisions to data, consumers not only amassed more

savings than we initially realized, but they also took advantage for corporations and consumers

of those ultra low rates earlier on in the pandemic, locking in and hedging themselves

against the rise in rates, and they still have a significant amount of savings amassed

allowing the Fed to say, wow, this is great, but also worry because an economy that's

strong risks reigniting the cooling embers of inflation, which they don't want to risk

as well.

We keep spending, it's not just on things, I mean, this will sound like I'm goofing around,

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