Tag Archives: May

Consumer credit declines in May

Consumer credit declines in May.

Consumers across America are slowly paying off their debt, continuing a trend has been exhibited in 18 of the last 20 months.

According to the latest report from the Federal Reserve [Board], the amount of money consumers owe to creditors declined at an annualized rate of 4.5 percent in May. That number equates to a drop of about $9.15 billion in consumer debt. The new national number for total consumer debt is $2.42 trillion. This was the fourth month in a row that consumer credit declined. Read the full post

Report shows consumer spending and personal income increase in May

Report shows that both consumer spending and personal income increased in May

Americans may be slowly improving their financial situation, new data from the U.S. Department of Commerce suggests. According to a report released Monday, consumer spending – a key indicator of economic health – increased by 0.2 percent in May after giving a flat reading in April.

Consumer spending accounts for nearly 70 percent of the economy and is often used to determine the strength of economic recovery. After disappointing results in April, May’s rate suggests that Americans are showing slightly more confidence in both their personal finances and the economy. Read the full post