Credit Card Debt Drops
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
WASHINGTON (AP) – Consumer borrowing posted the smallest increase in six months in April as Americans actually paid off some of their credit card debt.
The Federal Reserve reported Thursday that consumer borrowing rose at an annual rate of just 1.3 percent in April, down from a 7 percent rise in March. It was the weakest showing since consumer debt rose at a tiny 0.1 percent rate last October.
The slowdown was led by a 0.5 percent rate of decline in the category of debt that includes credit cards. That meant consumers were paying off more credit card debt than they incurred in May, something that has not occurred in 13 months.
