Americans are going through a fundamental shift in behaviour - they are moving from being the biggest spenders on the planet to becoming a nation of savers, with fundamental consequences for the economy.
After generations of living on tick, the country is turning to saving in response to the trauma of the credit crunch, according to CEOs at a
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"But not any more", added Daane, "house prices here have dropped 50 per cent."
This means Americans will have to live off a single income, and the evidence is that they are saving even that. The consumer electronics market is one of the markets which are suffering in consequence.
Chris Rowen, CEO of Tensilica, agreed. "For generations Americans have been consumers now they've become savers", Rowen told EW, "no one knows how long that will last, but it's a fundamental change in peoples' behaviour."
Will human nature eventually take over when saving appears to become restrictive and boring? No one knows. But it could be the biggest shift in the habits of ordinary Americans for 50 years.
This current trend in the American economy will not prevail in the long term and the culture will return to type. America is a huge consumer lead economy that will have a major influence on the global economy through consumer spending. The current frugal characteristic is not typical and will not last.
I agree Nigel. It's very untypical. I think American natural exuberance will prevail after (quite a short) time!