Stock market indexes continue to hit record highs in the month of May, continuing a trend of higher stock prices in 2026 compared to past years. While this could represent a strong point for investors, many voters are facing economic pressure with higher gas prices and higher costs of goods.
• State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust stock is approaching key resistance levels. What’s driving SPY to record levels?
Trump's Approval Rating Falls
Higher gas prices and costs of items like food are weighing on American consumers and hurting the approval rating of President Donald Trump.
In a new Emerson College poll, Trump's approval rating hits 39%, down one percentage point from the previous month. This marks another record low for the poll since Trump took office for his second term in January 2025.
Trump's disapproval rating stood at 55% for the May poll, improving one percentage point from a record-high 56% in April. This marks a tie for the second-highest disapproval rating for the president in his second term.
The net approval rating stands at -16, tied with April for the worst in Trump's second term.
The poll found that many voters pick the economy as the most important issue.
Here are the most recent rankings for four key items proposed to voters in the poll and the percent who picked the item as the most important issue:
- Economy: 41%
- Threats to Democracy: 19%
- Immigration: 11%
- Health care: 9%
Economy Top Issue
This marks the highest percentage for the economy in 2026. The rise in importance comes with higher gas prices weighing on voters.
For the economy, it could be the tale of two groups of Americans: those who are doing well with stock markets at record highs, and those struggling.
Retailer BJ's Wholesale (NYSE:BJ) may illustrate the divide in consumer health based on comments from the company's CEO after recent earnings.
A battle of income levels is showing at BJ’s locations, with CEO Bob Eddy saying lower-income shoppers have spending pressure, middle-income customers have limited growth and high-income shoppers are pushing the spending gains.
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY), which tracks the S&P 500, set another all-time high of $755.15 on Thursday, continuing to set new records in 2026.
While stocks are setting new highs, retailers are seeing signs of the divide between shoppers based on income levels, with higher gas prices now causing some shoppers to cut back on spending in other areas.
Voters in polls continue to show that record highs for stocks may not mean a lot when it comes to approving of the current presidency.
Photo courtesy: Shutterstock
Login to comment