Americans are carrying more credit card debtthan a year ago, yet the late-payment rate for card holders remains near an18-year low, an analysis of consumer-credit data shows.
The average credit card debt per borrower in the U.S. grew about 6 percent inthe second quarter from a year earlier, credit reporting agency TransUnion saidTuesday.
At the same time, the rate of payments at least 90 days overdue inched higherto 0.63 percent from 0.60 percent in the same period last year, when the ratehit the lowest level in 18 years. Card delinquencies sank to 0.56 percent inthe third quarter of 1994, the firm said.
The April-to-June figures reflect how consumers have been managing their creditcard use since the start of the last recession toward the end of 2007.
Many borrowers have taken steps to save money and whittle down their debt.Among homeowners with a mortgage, many have made credit card bills a priorityover their home loans and other financial obligations.
While late payments hover near lows not seen since the 1990s, cardholders havebeen racking up more debt.
In the second quarter, the average credit card debt per borrower rose 6 percentfrom a year earlier to $4,971, TransUnion said.
That's still about 13 percent less than $5,719, the average credit card debtper borrower in the second quarter of 2009. The latest figure was essentiallyflat from the first quarter of this year.
Between 2009 and 2011, borrowers pulled back on using credit and made an effortto slash their debt.
Average credit card balances also rose on an annual basis in the first threemonths of the year, as hiring picked up nationally and consumer confidenceimproved. It's too early to tell whether credit card debt will continue toclimb, however.
The pace of job growth slowed sharply in the second quarter, with employersadding an average of only 75,000 jobs. Hiring appeared to recover somewhat inJuly, however, with employers adding 163,000 jobs.
One likely contributor to the rise in card balances this year is that bankshave been issuing more cards to borrowers, including those withless-than-sterling credit.
The number of new cards issued to consumers in the second quarter rose 4percent from a year earlier, according to TransUnion. And 26.1 percent of thosecards went to non-prime borrowers, the company said.
The share of non-prime borrowers in the quarter was down slightly from 27percent in the prior-year period, TransUnion said.
"The credit pie is bigger and non-prime consumers are getting a biggerslice of that pie," said Ezra Becker, vice president at TransUnion'sfinancial services business unit.
Banks have become more open to issuing credit cards to higher-risk borrowersdue to tight competition for top-rated consumers, many of whom are not signingup for additional credit. That leaves the crop of borrowers with some blemishesin their credit history.
Even so, TransUnion forecasts that severe delinquency rates on cards will remainnear current low levels at least through the end of this year.