Consumer Credit Grows More Than Expected in September

“Consumer credit in the U.S. increased in September for a second month, led by a pickup in borrowing for education and automobiles.

The $11.4 billion gain followed a revised $18.4 billion jump in August, Federal Reserve figures showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 34 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a $10.2 billion increase in September.

Improving labor and housing markets may be giving households enough confidence to take on more debt as they finance purchases that account for about 70 percent of the economy. Auto sales in September that were the strongest in more than four years showed some Americans took advantage of cheaper borrowing costs.

“Overall, things are looking a bit brighter, and the U.S. economy is doing relatively better,” Yelena Shulyatyeva, an economist at BNP Paribas SA in New York, said before the report. “Consumers see housing prices going up and that makes them more confident about their balance sheet, and consumer confidence makes them spend more.”

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