...how do you reconcile this with a US economy that is said to...

...how do you reconcile this with a US economy that is said to be seemingly robust enough to likely cause the Fed to pause on rates?
...welcome to the K-economy, where a seeming rising tide does not lift all boats, but instead leave some worse off while others prosper and continue to thrive.
US large bankruptcies hit the highest level since the aftermath of the Great Financial Crisis:

The number of bankruptcy filings in the US reached 694 in 2024


Global Markets Investor
Jan 11, 2025

US bankruptcy filings of large companies (see the footnote) hit 694 for the full year of 2024, the highest since 2020, a year after the Great Financial Crisis.


In December, there were 61 filings, the biggest number in any December in at least 5 years.
Among sectors, 109 consumer discretionary companies went bankrupt, followed by 90 in industrials and 65 in healthcare.


Elevated interest rates and consumers pulling back on spending due to elevated inflation were the major drivers behind this concerning trend.
As a reminder, financial markets almost never react to such news unless it happens within the banking/insurance sector or in the case of the biggest country’s retailers. These days the most important thing for investors is still the US labor market and inflation data which drive the Federal Reserve's decisions.