Households have slashed their debt – often through painful foreclosures and bankruptcies – and their debt relative to income has sunk to its 2005 level, significantly below its 2008 peak. &#160;Helped by low interest rates, debt service relative to household income has fallen back to levels not seen since the early 1980’s. But consumption will be hit by the expiration of the payroll tax cut, which will reduce household income by about $125 billion this year.
实事求是地说，消费的资产负债表阻力已有所减缓。家庭债务已得到了削减——往往是通过痛苦的按揭止赎和破产实现——家庭债务/收入比率已降至2005年的水平，显著低于2008年的峰值。受低利率推动，债务偿付占家庭收入比重已降至20世纪80年代初的水平。但消费将因工资税减免计划到期而受到影响，今年的家庭收入将因此减少1 250亿美元。