Americans’ credit card debt falls, but past-due student loans drag on credit scores
CNN
Americans tidied up their household balance sheets to start 2025, cleaning up some credit card and auto loan debt, new data showed Tuesday.
Americans tidied up their household balance sheets to start 2025, cleaning up some credit card and auto loan debt, new data showed Tuesday. However, the debt outlook for millions of student loan borrowers was much grimmer: Past-due student loans hit credit reports for the first time in five years, tanking credit scores in the process. The latest snapshot of how economy-powering consumers are managing their debt loads was released Tuesday by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, in the closely watched Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit. During the first quarter, total household debt increased by $167 billion, just 0.9%, to $18.2 trillion, according to the report. Credit card and auto loan balances fell by $29 billion and $13 billion, respectively. Aggregate delinquency rates increased to 4.3% from the fourth quarter and to a level in line with what was seen pre-pandemic, New York Fed data shows. Flows into delinquency (30 days or more late) and serious delinquency (90-plus days) held fairly steady with the fourth quarter. The first quarter typically sees a pullback in credit card debt as consumers rein in post-holiday spending and pay off those purchases.
Artificial intelligence could widen the problem of income inequality, said BlackRock CEO Larry Fink in his annual letter to shareholders.
Stocks soared and oil prices fell after President Donald Trump on Monday said the United States would postpone further strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure, pending the outcome of negotiations.
The national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is on the verge of hitting $4 for the first time since 2022.
Oil prices rose Monday after the United States and Iran threatened fresh attacks on energy facilities in the Middle East, including power plants, signaling that the conflict may yet escalate.
The war in Iran is pushing up prices for already-strained farmers, with higher costs for fertilizer and energy on top of last year’s tariffs. And the increasing pressure on American agriculture could lead to even bigger price tags at the grocery store.
If you only watched Fox News over the weekend, you didn’t hear about President Donald Trump’s widely condemned reaction to Robert Mueller’s death.
Oil prices rose Sunday after President Donald Trump threatened to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened by Monday evening.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been taking steps to thwart news coverage of the Pentagon for more than a year. Now he has finally met some resistance.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been taking steps to thwart news coverage of the Pentagon for more than a year. Now he has finally met some resistance.
Gerald Rodriguez, the general manager of an NPR affiliate in rural Colorado, expected federal funding for public media to shrink. He didn’t expect it to disappear almost overnight.
The much-touted new tax breaks for tips, overtime, seniors and car loan interest have a lot of income tax filers expecting a big bump in their refunds this year – or a big cut in their tax bill.
Looking out his shop window, across the street, just to the right, Paloma Clothing co-owner Mike Roach sees one of Portland, Oregon’s, most expensive gas stations.
Oil and liquefied natural gas tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz carry around 20% of the world’s supply. But for countries on the Persian Gulf, the waterway is more than just an energy route – it’s a lifeline for more than 100 million people.