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- Monday, January 9, 3:30 PM Nov. Consumer Credit: +$20.4B (annual rate of +9.9%), the largest increase since Nov. 2001, vs. expected +$7B, to $2.478T. Non-revolving debt, such as auto loans, personal loans and student loans, rose $14.8B, or 10.7%; credit card debt jumped by $5.6M, or 8.5%.
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That has to be typo unless we are talking about Donald Trump's credit card :)
Always pays to read the fineprint on these things.
The direction of credit expansion is up and the banks look like they are starting to lend a little, but curiously Total Lending by Commercial Banks is actually lower year over and quarter over quarter from 2010. I wish someone could explain this because it seems so at odds with the headline.
Most of the growth is non-revolving which is defined as:
"Includes automobile loans and all other loans not included in revolving credit, such as loans for mobile homes, education, boats, trailers, or vacations. These loans may be secured or unsecured."
The steady growth once again is in the Federal Government row which is:
"Data for the Student Loan Marketing Association (Sallie Mae) are included in the Federal government sector until the completion of Sallie Mae's privatization in 2004:Q4 and in the Finance companies sector thereafter."
Reading between the lines it appears that most of the new debt is in the form of education loans which makes senses as people try to reinvent themselves. Hopefully they can get a job to pay off those loans when they graduate.