Washington, DC, July 9-- Americans stepped up their borrowing in May as an improving jobs market and growing economy gave consumers more confidence to take on debt.
The Federal Reserve said Thursday that consumer credit increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.9 percent, or by $8.17 billion, from April. That pushed total consumer credit outstanding to a record $2.03 trillion.
The increase marked the largest monthly gain since January, when consumer credit jumped by 15.8 percent, or $26.14 billion.
The Fed's report includes credit card debt and loans for things like boats, cars and mobile homes. It does not include real estate loans, such as home mortgages or popular home-equity loans.
In May, credit card and other revolving credit rose by $1.56 billion, an increase of 2.6 percent.
For non-revolving credit, which includes loans for cars, vacations and education, borrowing increased 6.2 percent in May, or by $6.61 billion.
The increased borrowing in May coincided with a string of positive employment reports showing hiring gains.
