Some Americans enjoyed massive gains in the stock market during 2025, while others cut corners as prices grew higher. CBS MoneyWatch correspondent Kelly O'Grady has more on the U.S. economy as 2026 approaches.

US economic growth accelerated in the third quarter of 2025, with GDP rising to 4.3% largely due to increased consumer spending by high-income households. Economists note that the top 10% of earners are now responsible for about half of all consumer spending, while lower-income households continue to cut back and rely more on credit, leading to rising debt and delinquencies.

The unemployment rate reached a four-year high of 4.6%, slightly above the healthy range, and job growth is concentrated in health care, which may not benefit all job seekers. Meanwhile, gold prices have surged to their highest levels since 1979, reflecting investor concerns about market volatility and inflation.

Some Americans kept spending in 2025 despite concerns about economy

U.S. economic growth surged in the third quarter of this year. The GDP rate rose to 4.3 percent, fueled by an increase in consumer spending. However, economists say it's largely high-income households that are opening up their wallets, while low-income earners are still cutting corners. CBS News Money Watch correspondent Kelly O'Grady joins me now with more on this. Kelly, great to see you. So, how big is that disparity we're talking about between those high- and low-income households? And will that dynamic continue, you think, in 2026? Traditionally, you have high-income earners spending more, right? I mean, it just makes sense. But we've seen that disparity grow and grow, particularly this past year. Right now, the top 10 percent of earners are responsible for roughly half of the spending. And so we do expect to see that disparity grow. I think the two things that I'm really watching for, though, are, one, those lower-income households, how much are they putting on their credit cards? Because we know that they are still spending, but we also know that credit card debt and delinquencies, they continue to rise, as does buy-now-pay-later usage, right? Let's just think about the holiday season. People we know, they're spending. They want to give that wonderful Christmas to their children, to their friends and family. But what happens in January, come 2026, if they aren't able to pay off those debts? So that's one thing I'm watching for. And then the other thing, the reason why the disparity has grown over the past five years is that wages have not kept up cumulatively with how much prices have risen. So if you don't see that gap close – and by the way, it takes a while for that gap to close – you're going to continue to see that disparity grow. OK, that makes a lot of sense. So the unemployment rate, we also understand, hit a four-year high in November, Kelly. How much could that drag down the economy next year? So for context, the unemployment rate is sitting at 4.6%. Right now, the healthy band that we consider is anywhere between 4 and 4.4%. So it's not anywhere near where we were at pandemic levels, where it was multiple percentage points higher. The big question is, is we haven't seen a lot of mass firing. If 2026, we do see that pick up, because right now we've been in a slow-to-fire, slow-to-hire environment. We already know that people who are looking for a job are out of work for a long time, you know, weeks and weeks and weeks. And so if you do see more people who are unemployed enter the job market, that's going to be the other difficult piece. The other side of it is that the jobs that are being created, they are not jobs that are one-to-one. Let's say you and I are out of work, Chanel. Most of the growth right now is coming from health care. I don't know about you, but I don't have a nursing or medical degree in my back pocket. So that's the other thing to look at, where the growth is coming next year. OK, Kelly, we have a couple of seconds left, but I do want to ask you about this, because gold is sort of having a moment, right? It's having its best year since 1979. Why? Can you explain why that's happening and what this could mean for 2026? Gold is a safe asset. When there's a lot of volatility in the stock market, when people are concerned about inflation, because there is a finite amount, and it's not like with a dollar where you can just print more of it. We do expect to see the price to rise. Most banks are looking at about $5,000 right now as the target, and we're sitting at about $4,500 right now. OK, Kelly O'Grady, thank you.

Some of the stabbed victims remain in serious condition. A 38-year-old man was arrested for alleged attempted murder at the factory, authorities said.

Mishima

At least 15 injured in chemical attack, stabbing at Japan factory

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he was shocked by the "horrific killing spree" and pledged Israel would reinforce its security.

Jerusalem

Palestinian man kills two in car, knife attack in northern Israel

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Pyongyang

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The United States launched airstrikes on Islamic State targets in Nigeria's Sokoto State on Thursday. Nigerian authorities denied Trump's claim of mass killings of Christians amid mixed reactions to the U.S. intervention.

Abuja

Nigeria confirms cooperation with U.S. strikes on IS targets

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday (December 26) he planned to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump soon and that a lot could be decided before the New Year as Washington pushes diplomatic efforts to end the war with Russia.

Washington

Ukraine Invasion

Zelenskiy: 'A lot' can be decided before New Year ahead of Trump talk

The United States carried out airstrikes against ISIS militants in northwest Nigeria at the request of Nigeria's government, U.S. President Donald Trump and the U.S. military said on Thursday, claiming the group had been targeting Christians in the region.

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Official results show Asfura edged out his main rival Salvador Nasralla by less than one percentage point. Marred by delays and fraud claims, the Honduran election continues Latin America's shift to the right.

Tegucigalpa

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Several people were killed in Southern California when severe storms with heavy rain caused mudslides and flooding, which was made worse in areas affected by wildfires in January.

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Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first Christmas Mass Wednesday evening where he described the celebration as a feast of "faith, charity and hope". He reminded the faithful that refusing to help the poor and vulnerable is comparable to rejecting God altogether.

Rome

Pope Leo reminds believers to help the poor in first Christmas mass

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signaled progress in a Ukraine-Russia peace plan, after he told journalists about a new draft that would include a free economic zone and demilitarization. Holly Williams has the latest.

Kyiv

Zelenskyy signals progress with Ukraine-Russia peace plan

Democrats and some Republicans are blasting the Justice Department over its handling of the release of files related to Jeffrey Epstein, which included major redactions.

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Bolsonaro is expected to undergo the procedure on 25 December.

Brasília

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Moscow

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Paris

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The latest Epstein file release alleges a connection between former prince Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell, including emails in which an individual identified as 'A' requested 'inappropriate friends.'

London

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New York

U.S., Venezuela in war of words at UNSC over military strikes

Two people are dead after an explosion at a nursing home in Bristol, Pennsylvania, and several are still missing, Gov. Josh Shapiro said.

Bristol

Two dead, several missing after nursing home explosion in Pennsylvania

A Delaware state trooper was killed Tuesday during a shooting at a Wilmington DMV, the Delaware State Police said. The state's governor confirmed the shooter is also dead.

Wilmington

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The Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that President Trump cannot deploy the National Guard troops to Chicago as a legal challenge moves ahead.

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The Justice Department released a new trove of documents from its investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including an email from a prosecutor indicating President Donald Trump had traveled aboard his private jet "many more times than previously has been reported."

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Haymana

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Bolton

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French Parliament has approved the Stopgap Bill two days before Christmas. The budget bill now moves to French senate.

Parijs

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Russia fired more than 650 drones and three dozen missiles at Ukraine in a large-scale attack that began during the night and stretched into daylight hours Tuesday, officials said. At least three people were killed, including a 4-year-old child, two days before Christmas.

Kiev

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The U.S. Department of Justice has released another batch of files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including videos, emails and documents. CBS News' Scott MacFarlane reports.

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The leaders of Denmark and Greenland insisted that the United States won't take over Greenland and demanded respect for their territorial integrity after President Donald Trump ‍​announced ​the appointment of a ‌special envoy to the semi-autonomous territory.

Nuuk

Trump's appointment of envoy to Greenland sparks tension with Denmark

Australia's most populous state is set to pass tougher gun laws, ban the display of terrorist symbols and curb protests after the state parliament's lower house cleared a bill late on Monday (December 22) in an emergency sitting following the Bondi mass shooting.

Breakdown