What is the consumer credit report?

The Federal Reserve's G.19 Consumer Credit report, released monthly, measures the change in outstanding nonmortgage household debt. It tracks two categories: revolving credit (primarily credit cards, where the balance can fluctuate) and nonrevolving credit (installment loans with fixed payments, primarily auto loans and student loans). Total consumer credit outstanding exceeds $5 trillion, making it a significant component of household financial obligations.

Monthly changes in consumer credit provide real-time information about household borrowing behavior. A strong increase in revolving credit (credit card borrowing) can signal either healthy consumer confidence (people are spending) or financial stress (people are borrowing to make ends meet). The interpretation depends on context: credit card balances rising alongside strong income growth and low delinquencies suggest confidence, while balances rising with stagnant incomes and rising delinquencies suggest consumers are stretching to maintain spending.

Auto loan and student loan data within the nonrevolving category reveal structural trends. Auto loans have grown substantially, driven by rising vehicle prices (the average new car transaction price exceeded $48,000 in 2024) and longer loan terms (72-84 months becoming common). Student loan dynamics shifted dramatically when pandemic-era forbearance ended in October 2023, reintroducing monthly payments for roughly 44 million borrowers and affecting consumer spending capacity.

For macroeconomic forecasting, the consumer credit report complements the retail sales data by showing how spending is being financed. When retail sales grow while credit card borrowing surges, it suggests spending may be unsustainable. When sales grow from income rather than borrowing, the spending trend is healthier. The report also informs credit quality analysis: the growth rate of consumer credit relative to income growth reveals whether households are becoming more leveraged, a condition that increases vulnerability to economic shocks and potential default cascades.