Falcon Heights, Minnesota (CNN) — Consumer spending is a crucial part of the US economy, accounting for about two-thirds of its growth. And judging from retail sales data released earlier this week, that economic engine appears to be running smoothly. Sales were up a strong 0.6% in August , a month when spending was expected to be somewhat lackluster.

At face value, this latest data appears to be yet another testament to the sheer “resilience” of the US consumer, a storyline that’s become all too familiar these past several years: that ‘despite (insert economic concern here), the US consumer is doing just fine and keeping the economy chugging along.’

However, the solid gains are masking a deepening inequality among US households’ economic experiences, a “K-shaped economy,” where a

See Full Page