Consumers are increasingly using savings to sustain spending as energy costs rise, real wages turn negative and uncertainty about artificial intelligence weighs on sentiment, IBM vice chairman Gary Cohn said in an interview aired Sept. 20, 2026. Cohn said the broader economy remains stable, with solid GDP, employment and consumer spending, but warned that declining savings cannot support consumption indefinitely. He defended the Federal Reserve's unanimous 25-basis-point rate increase, saying the move was intended to reduce demand while supply-side inflation persists. Cohn also said the Treasury Secretary's purchase of $5 billion in U.S. debt and the Federal Reserve's rate policy were aimed at lowering borrowing costs farther along the yield curve, while ultimately Congress must reduce spending.