U.S. Consumer Credit Has Largest Increase in 13 Years

U.S. consumer credit soared in July, posting its biggest jump since November 2001, driven in part by demand for auto loans and student borrowings.

Total consumer credit increased $26.01 billion to $3.24 trillion in July, the Federal Reserve said on Monday. June’s consumer credit figure was revised up to show an $18.81 billion increase from $17.26 billion.  Economists polled by Reuters had expected consumer credit to increase $17.35 billion in July.

Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, said the credit growth is being driven by auto loans, though he added that signs of loose standards and spikes in default rates are showing.  “The only thing we have to worry about is there is excessive risk-taking in the auto sector,” said Low. “But it’s still a good thing for the economy at least in the short term. Car sales are back to where they were before the financial crisis, which is remarkable.”

Reuters

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