WASHINGTON: US consumers unexpectedly pared debt in August after 10 straight months of gains amid rising concerns about the economy, central bank data showed Friday.
Consumer credit fell to a seasonally adjusted $2.44 trillion, a decline at an annual rate of 4.6 percent, the Federal Reserve said.
Most analysts had expected the months-long upward trend would continue in August, after a sharp 5.9 percent increase in July was the strongest since April 2008.
But consumers hunkered down in the face of a turbulent August marked by the first US credit rating downgrade and a Washington political battle over raising the debt limit that pushed the country to the brink of default.
Consumer confidence was also hammered by growing fears that Greece would default, potentially dragging the global economy back into recession.
According to the Fed data, the decline in August was led by a drop in nonrevolving credit, such as automobile financing and student loans.
Revolving credit, essentially credit-card transactions, fell for the second month running in August, at a rate of 3.4 percent per year.
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