Earnings reports from retailers out this week are raising new questions about the health of the U.S. consumer, with companies including Walmart and Target reporting that people are resilient but focusing more on necessities than on frills in the face of higher inflation.

If so, that's bad news for travel and leisure companies that tend to do best when people have money to spend on extras. Investors are reacting by exiting airline stocks, with shares of JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU), United Airlines Holdings (NASDAQ: UAL), American Airlines Group (NASDAQ: AAL), and Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) ending Wednesday down between 2.3% and 4.9%. 

Airline investors are already dealing with the lingering effects of the pandemic, a pilot shortage, and higher costs. The last thing they need is for demand to fall off.

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Source Fool.com