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US credit card balances exceeded $1 trillion for the first time as consumers in the United States spend the most since the end of the pandemic, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in a blog post on Tuesday.
“Credit card balances saw the largest increase of all debt types – $45 billion – and now stand at $1.03 trillion, surpassing $1 trillion in nominal terms for the first time in the series history,” the blog said.
The blog post was written by staff writers Andrew Haughwout, Donghoon Lee, Daniel Mangrum, Joelle Scally and Wilbert van der Klaauw.
After a sharp contraction in the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, credit card balances have seen seven quarters of year-over-year growth, the blog said, adding that the second quarter of this year saw a brisk 16.2% increase from the previous year, continuing the trend.
“Credit cards are the most prevalent form of household debt and continue to become even more widespread,” the blog said, noting there are now 70 million more credit card accounts open than there were before the pandemic in 2019. “While lending did take a dip during the first year of the pandemic, credit card issuances have been at somewhat elevated levels since.”
The staff writers said some 69% of Americans had a credit card account in the second quarter of this year, up from 65% in December of 2019 and 59% in December 2013.
Evidence of crimes against humanity