Americans racked up a record $180B in new credit card debt in 2022 trends now
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Americans racked up a record $180.3 billion in additional credit card debt last year, as rampant inflation and dwindling savings rates forced many families to tap lines of credit, a new study finds.
US credit card users ended 2022 with $1.18 trillion in outstanding credit card debt, a 15% increase from the year before, according to a study by WalletHub released on Wednesday.
In the fourth quarter alone, credit card debt increased by $85.8 billion – the highest quarterly increase ever recorded – and the average household ended the year with $9,990 in credit card debt.
As the Federal Reserve raises its benchmark interest rate to fight inflation, credit card variable rates have risen in tandem, making the debt more costly to pay off.
Americans racked up a record $180.3 billion in additional credit card debt last year
If the Fed issues a larger 0.5-percentage point rate hike later this month as expected, it will cost credit card users $3.4 billion in addition interest payments over the next 12 months, according to another study for WalletHub.
The study rates the probability of a 50 basis point hike at the March 22 meeting at
