US household debt surpasses $15T in fourth quarter

Bu Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - US household debt climbed to $15.58 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2021, according to Federal Reserve Bank of New York data released Tuesday.

The figure is a $333 billion, or 2.2%, increase from the third quarter, it said.

Mortgage balances, the largest component of household debt, rose by $258 billion to $10.93 trillion at the end of December.

Student loan balances contracted by $8 billion but it marked a $21 billion increase since the final quarter of 2020 -- the smallest annual increase in nearly two decades.

"Credit card balances increased by $52 billion, the largest quarterly increase observed in the 22 year history of the data," said the bank.

The volume of new auto loans increased by $15 billion to $181 billion.