Inflation is weighing on US incomes to a degree comparable to the 2008 Great Recession – potentially reducing consumer spending power ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season, according to a JPMorgan report released Tuesday.

As of October, the median income growth for people ages 25 to 54 stood at just 1.6% once adjusted for inflation, according to an analysis of bank account data.

“Households are going into the end of the year with weak income growth and bank balances that remain flat, after adjusting for inflation,” JPMorgan Chase Institute said in a statement.

In some cases, lower checking and savings account balances could reflect money being diverted to higher-yield money markets or other funds to take advantage of current interest rates, the institute noted.

But that 1.6% gro

See Full Page