US markets are rising on AI-driven corporate earnings, but the gains are bad news for regular people who aren't sharing in them.

• Stocks jumped as Trump teased fresh US-Iran talks in Qatar, though Iran denied any meeting is planned — markets now swing on each day's headline.
• Company earnings are growing 20%+ while the actual economy grows only 3%, so stocks and stock profits have far outrun wages and ordinary businesses since 2000.
• The richest 10% now drive half of all consumer spending, and what's holding up younger people is mostly money handed down from their boomer parents and grandparents.
• Housing is brutal: building a modest home can mean paying for land and construction as two separate loans, turning a $500,000 house into a $900,000 bill, while property taxes climb 30%.
• Everyday prices keep testing limits — $20 restaurant drinks, $7 chip bags, creeping subscription fees — and many teachers are living paycheck to paycheck.

Outlook: Expect more of the same split — strong markets and corporate profits alongside squeezed households — unless prices or rates finally ease.