WASHINGTON – Consumer borrowing increased by $2.1 billion in September, a 1.1% annual rate, the first increase since January, the Federal Reserve reported Friday.
Consumer credit for the quarter ending Sept. 30 fell 1.4%. Credit in August fell by 2.5%, revised from a 5.8% decline reported last month.
Economists expected consumer credit would decline by $3.05 billion, according to the median estimate from Thomson Reuters.
Revolving credit, which includes credit card loans, fell by $8.3 billion, or 12.1%. Revolving credit has declined every month for two years.
Non-revolving credit which includes loans for cars and education increased by $10.4 billion, or 7.9%, the largest percentage gain in more than two years. For the quarter, non-revolving credit increased 2.5%.
Loans held by commercial banks slid by $14.9 billion to $1.128 trillion.
