PayPal shares plunged nearly 10% following its latest earnings report and a warning from CEO Alex Chriss about softening U.S. consumer spending amid escalating tariff tensions. Although the company delivered its sixth straight quarter of profitable growth, the decline reflects growing investor concerns over macroeconomic headwinds and trade-related uncertainty.

Chriss and CFO Jamie Miller reaffirmed the company’s full-year guidance, but noted that while retail activity showed strength early in the quarter driven partly by anticipated tariff-related purchases momentum has weakened. They flagged that 90% of PayPal’s revenue is linked to consumer-driven transactions, making it especially vulnerable to shifts in household spending trends.

Further exacerbating investor anxiety, analysts at firms like Seaport Research Partners downgraded PayPal amid skepticism over its mid-term growth amid a “tariff-heavy” global landscape. The firm expressed concerns that consumer credit activity and transaction volumes could be hit if discretionary spending slows.

Despite resilience in certain areas such as branded checkout and merchant services, PayPal faces stiff competition from Big Tech players and operational risks tied to trade friction. The slide in the stock underscores heightened sensitivity to global trade policy, even as the company's fundamentals remain solid.