The latest data from the Federal Reserve Board’s G.19 Consumer Credit Report show an increase in consumer credit at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.3% during the first quarter of 2019. During this time, revolving credit1 increased by 1.4% and non-revolving credit2 increased by 5.3%. At the end of the first quarter, total outstanding consumer credit totaled $4.1 trillion. Despite the quarterly increase in consumer credit and its two components, outstanding revolving debt decreased by 2.5%, or $2.1 billion compared to February 2019. Meanwhile, non-revolving debt, increased from the previous month by $12.5 billion. Interestingly, the Federal Reserve’s revision of previous months’ data in part shows that revolving debt sharply declined in December 2018 by 3.0%. The G.19 report’s non-revolving debt excludes loans which are secured by real estate, e.g., mortgages.

The above figure shows that revolving and non-revolving debt have roughly held the same share of consumer credit for the past 12 months. The flows’ data, upon closer examination, show that there has been a steady decline in revolving debt, while non-revolving debt has been climbing up on a monthly basis.


  1. According to the Federal Reserve’s G.19 Consumer Credit report, revolving credit plans, which are largely composed of credit card debt but also include home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), may be unsecured or secured by collateral and allow a consumer to borrow up to a prearranged limit and repay the debt in one or more installments.
  2. According to the Federal Reserve’s G.19 Consumer Credit report, non-revolving credit is closed-end credit extended to consumers that is repaid on a prearranged repayment schedule and may be secured or unsecured.

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