Measuring the Pulse of Consumers: Inside the New Market Pulse Index with the Equifax Advisors

Highlights: 

• The latest episode of the Market Pulse Podcast introduces the Market Pulse Index, offering a comprehensive view of U.S. consumer financial health by combining multiple financial dimensions.

• The podcast highlights how the Index helps organizations navigate economic uncertainty, especially during government data delays, by revealing underlying market health through alternative and aggregated data sources.

• The Equifax Advisors on the podcast discuss how the Market Pulse Index reflects K-shaped economic dynamics, showing how different income groups are affected by inflation and economic changes, which is crucial for refining risk strategies, targeting segments, and aligning marketing efforts.

As the U.S. government shutdown delays critical economic data releases, how can decision makers navigate uncertainty? In the latest episode of the Market Pulse Podcast, some of Equifax Advisors Jesse Hardin, Tom O’Neill, Emmaline Aliff, and I discuss timely insights—and introduce the Market Pulse Index, a new way to capture a comprehensive view of financial health across populations. 

Why is this episode especially relevant now?

At the time of recording, the U.S. government shutdown had entered its sixth day, forcing several federal agencies to suspend operations. Among the impacts: the delay of key reports, including the September jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Without these releases, policymakers and market participants are temporarily deprived of vital signals on employment and output—making it harder to calibrate responses to evolving conditions.

In this environment, the Equifax Advisors team underscores the importance of alternative and aggregated data sources that can reveal underlying market health. When public-sector data is paused, businesses still need tools that provide clarity—especially for tracking labor market cooling, price stability, and consumer sentiment.

What is the Market Pulse Index?

The Market Pulse Index is a new composite measure developed by Equifax Advisors to provide a holistic view of the U.S. consumer financial health. Rather than focusing on one indicator, the index combines multiple financial dimensions—such as credit performance, income levels, debt burdens, asset values, and affluence—into a single, aggregated metric.

This multi-dimensional approach helps organizations interpret how financial conditions interact and change over time and over changing economic circumstances. For example, changes in income affect borrowing capacity, while asset gains or losses can influence spending behavior. By synthesizing these relationships, the Market Pulse Index offers a more contextualized picture of economic well-being than traditional averages alone.

Why do headline metrics like CPI and GDP only tell part of the story?

Measures such as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) offer valuable insights, but they capture broad national trends rather than local or demographic realities. These indicators can obscure significant variation across income groups, age cohorts, and geographies.

Equifax Advisors note that looking beneath headline figures, like tracking job revisions, three-month employment averages, or core goods inflation—can uncover early warning signs and better reflect consumer-level pressures. Averages may appear stable even when certain populations are struggling, so understanding the distribution of outcomes is essential for effective risk management and strategy.

How does the Market Pulse Index reflect the K-shaped economy?

The team emphasizes that today’s economy continues to show K-shaped dynamics—where high-income households maintain strong spending and investment activity, while lower-income groups experience tightening budgets and limited savings.

The Market Pulse Index captures this divergence by combining data across income tiers, credit segments, and asset categories. It reveals that while aggregate statistics may show resilience, underlying populations are moving in opposite directions. For example, higher earners may benefit from stock market gains and property appreciation, whereas younger or lower-income consumers face higher borrowing costs and slower wage growth.

This segmented visibility helps lenders and policymakers identify which groups are absorbing inflationary pressures and which are at greater risk of financial strain.

What makes the Market Pulse Index unique?

Unlike static indicators, the Market Pulse Index accounts for interdependencies among financial factors. Rather than treating income, credit, and wealth as isolated variables, the index models how they influence each other—mirroring real-world financial behavior.

It also incorporates contextual interpretation. The same asset value can carry very different implications depending on age, location, and life stage. By acknowledging this nuance, the Market Pulse Index avoids one-size-fits-all conclusions and supports data-driven differentiation across customer segments.

This approach gives financial institutions a richer, more actionable perspective—particularly when designing lending products, forecasting risk, or assessing portfolio exposure.

How can organizations apply these insights?

The Market Pulse Index offers a range of applications across industries:

• Lenders can use it to refine risk and credit strategies, better target segments with emerging affordability challenges, and design products aligned with current financial realities.

• Policymakers can leverage its insights to assess financial resilience across regions or demographics and identify where support or intervention may be most needed.

• Businesses can align marketing and growth strategies with true consumer segment capacity rather than relying on broad macro assumptions.

By integrating multiple data sources, organizations can move from surface-level trends to multi-layered understanding, leading to smarter and more inclusive decision-making.

How does inflation factor into the analysis?

Inflation has been one of the defining challenges in recent years. Its effects are not uniform: while rising prices erode purchasing power, some households have offset these pressures through higher wages, investment gains, or home equity growth. Others—especially renters or those with variable-rate debt—have faced steeper trade-offs.

The Market Pulse Index captures these crosscurrents, showing where inflation’s impact is compounded or mitigated. This allows for nuanced assessments of economic resilience rather than assuming a single inflation experience across all consumers.

What’s next for the Market Pulse Index?

Equifax Advisors will continue expanding the use of the Market Pulse Index to explore regional variations, demographic differences, and sector-specific trends. Future insights will examine how the index reflects holiday spending, credit migration, and economic sentiment as the year unfolds.

In an era where uncertainty and data disruption are common, the Market Pulse Index provides a comprehensive, adaptive lens—empowering organizations to make confident decisions grounded in a true understanding of the U.S. consumer financial  health.

Interested in learning how personalized insights can drive your business forward? Sign up for a complimentary 60-minute Market Pulse Advisory session with one of our advisors. 

For more insights, tune in to the full Market Pulse Podcast episode. If you have questions or suggestions for future podcasts, please reach out to riskadvisors@equifax.com.