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The top income bracket spends the most among American consumers, but its strength amid inflation may be overstated, according to a new CNBC survey.

Members of the CNBC CFO Council have mentioned "a tale of two cities" among consumers, with higher income bracket consumers continuing to be strong while lower income consumers are beginning to chew through the stimulus. "The American consumer is in a dark mood," Zandi said of the CNBC survey data. The Conference Board's most recent CEO survey showed that companies are passing along the costs of inflation relatively quickly to consumers, and that pattern is likely to continue in the months ahead, with wage gains a contributing factor. What its confidence survey is forecasting is a slowdown in growth over the next few quarters driven by higher prices, and more Americans spending less on discretionary items as more of their money goes to covering the basics. The 68% of high-income consumers who said they are worried higher prices will force them to rethink financial decisions is significantly lower than the 82% of Americans with income of $50,000 or less who told the survey this, but it is still a majority. She said the gap does always narrow in a pre-recession period — but its data is not indicating a recession as of now. "I suspect the American consumer will continue spending, regardless of their mood, as long as the job market remains strong," Zandi said. The University of Michigan Survey of Consumers finds more consumers mentioning reduced living standards due to rising inflation than at any other time in the survey's history except during the two worst recessions in the past 50 years: from March 1979 to April 1981 and from May to October 2008. They are also clearly experiencing more financial anxiety, according to the survey, with 57% of Americans with income under $50,000 saying they are under more stress than a year ago, versus 45% of those with incomes of $100,000 or more. While it represents only one-third of consumers, it is responsible for up to three-quarters of the spending. A new survey from CNBC and Momentive finds rising concerns about inflation and the risk of recession, and Americans saying not only have started buying less but will be buying less across more categories if inflation persists. Even with a strong job market and wage gains, as well as Covid stimulus savings, pricing spikes in core spending categories including food, gas and shelter are leading more Americans to mind their pocketbooks closely.