- Student-loan repayments will soon restart after a years-long pause.
- Consumers are expected to cut their shopping budgets, especially on apparel, as debt repayments loom.
Millions of people are expected to slash their shopping budgets when student-loan repayments restart after a years-long pause.
Apparel sales, in particular, will take a big hit when the repayment pause ends, UBS analysts led by Jay Sole said in a new report.
To find out which retailers are most at risk of a spending slowdown, UBS polled nearly 1,400 student-loan borrowers on their favorite brands.
The retailers most at risk include Crocs, Nike, Nordstrom, Canada Goose, and Victoria's Secret, the analysts found.
Other retailers whose sales are likely to suffer are American Eagle Outfitters, Carter's, Foot Locker, Under Armour, Gap, and Shopify, according to the survey.
Consumers faced with inflation and other economic woes are likely to defer apparel purchases more than other types of spending – such as entertainment, vacations, home improvements, and dining out – and this trend is even more pronounced among consumers with student loans, the analysts said.
"We believe this indicates student loan consumers will reduce spending on apparel in a big way when they have to start paying off their student loan debt."
President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan deal to lift the debt ceiling on June 3, averting a US debt default with just two days to spare. The measure followed tense negotiations between Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. It kept the country from defaulting on its obligations, but the compromise deal also codifies the end of the pandemic-era pause that has kept borrowers from having to repay student loans.
The pause dates back to March 2020, when it went into effect under former President Donald Trump as a way to provide financial relief amid shutdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Biden last extended the pause in November, but it's due to end either 60 days after June 30 or 60 days after the US Supreme Court rules on legal challenges to Biden's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt.