Consumer credit in the U.S. flew out of the blocks two months ago, jumping by much more than expected.
A new report released by the U.S. Federal Reserve on Monday said consumer credit increased by $18.4 billion in May after climbing by an upwardly revised $12.9 billion in April.
Economists had expected consumer credit to rise by $12.7 billion compared to the $8.2 billion increase originally reported for the previous month.
On a day almost bereft of economic news down south, the Fed also said revolving credit, which largely reflects credit card debt, increased by $7.3 billion after inching up by $1.2 billion in the previous month.
The U.S. central bank went on to say consumer credit increased by an annual rate of 5.8% in April, as revolving and non-revolving credit surged up by 8.7% and 4.7%, respectively.
