It’s getting harder to argue that the US economy is in good shape. At least, not without a ton of footnotes, caveats and fine print.

Concerns about the economy are validated most easily in the labor market, which, by practically all accounts, is looking bleaker and bleaker by the day. And inflation has started to creep up again. A key consumer inflation report due Thursday is expected to show the pace of price increases picked up in August.

This all comes as businesses remain in a state of paralysis over President Donald Trump’s tariff rollout. The hefty taxes have caused employers to veer away from taking on more workers, particularly in tariff-sensitive sectors like construction and manufacturing, where companies are cutting their workforces.

The economic reality has earned Trump

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