U.S. consumer borrowing rose more than forecast in November as Americans used credit cards and auto loans to add to a record amount of debt, Federal Reserve statistics showed.
Consumer credit increased $15.4 billion for the month to $2.51 trillion, the Fed said today in Washington. In October, credit rose $2 billion, less than the previously reported gain of $4.7 billion. The Fed's report doesn't cover borrowing secured by real estate, such as home-equity loans.
The figures suggest Americans are relying more on credit cards and other short-term borrowing to maintain spending after the collapse in subprime lending made bank loans harder to get. An increase of 133,000 U.S. jobs in November and December was the lowest for those two months since 2002 and disposable incomes aren't keeping pace with inflation.
``With job losses mounting, this could be the tip of the iceberg with consumers needing to rely more on credit cards now that personal income is lagging,'' said Chris Rupkey, an economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, in New York.
The report explains how consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of the economy, strengthened at the start of the holiday shopping season. Commerce Department figures released Dec. 21 showed U.S. personal spending rose 1.1 percent in November after a 0.4 percent increase in October.
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