Beginning with the release in early July, the G.19 will no longer provide separate estimates for the automobile and "other" categories.
Instead, these two categories will be combined into a single category called nonrevolving credit.  This change is being made because we
believe that the split between the two categories has become unreliable, owing to shifts in the composition of our monthly commercial bank  
panel and the lack of suitable benchmarks for the commercial bank automobile and "other" credit series.






G.19                                                        CONSUMER CREDIT                        For release at 3 p.m. (Eastern Time)
1                                                             March 1999                                                    May 7, 1999

Consumer credit growth slowed to a 1.4 percent annual rate in March, down from 8 percent in February.  In March, automobile
credit growth remained strong at a 10 percent rate, while the levels of both revolving and "other" credit turned down.

CONSUMER CREDIT OUTSTANDING 1
Seasonally adjusted
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                                                                     1998                                                1999
                                _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________

                                 Mar.    Apr.     May    June    July    Aug.    Sept.   Oct.    Nov.    Dec.    Jan.   Feb. r  Mar. p
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Percent change at annual rate 2
  Total                             6.6     4.3     2.3     9.0     5.4     6.6     6.9    10.6     1.6     2.4    14.1     8.0     1.4
   Automobile                       8.8     4.1     4.0     8.2     8.0    12.1     8.1     6.1    12.6    12.4    19.0    13.2     9.9
   Revolving                        9.1     5.4    -1.4     9.2    -4.2    10.7     7.5    13.0    -2.4     8.6    13.2     5.1    -1.6
   Other 3                         -1.2     2.3     6.9     9.6    19.6    -8.9     4.2    12.7    -7.2   -24.1     8.2     5.6    -6.1

Amount: billions of dollars
  Total                         1,247.3 1,251.8 1,254.2 1,263.5 1,269.2 1,276.2 1,283.6 1,294.9 1,296.6 1,299.2 1,314.5 1,323.2 1,324.8
   Automobile                     419.8   421.2   422.6   425.5   428.3   432.7   435.6   437.8   442.4   447.0   454.1   459.1   462.9
   Revolving                      539.4   541.8   541.2   545.3   543.4   548.3   551.7   557.6   556.5   560.5   566.7   569.1   568.3
   Other 3                        288.2   288.7   290.4   292.7   297.5   295.3   296.3   299.5   297.7   291.7   293.7   295.1   293.6
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TERMS OF CREDIT AT COMMERCIAL BANKS AND FINANCE COMPANIES 4
Percent except as noted: not seasonally adjusted
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Institution, terms, and type of loan
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Commercial banks
  Interest rates
   48-mo. new car                  n.a.    n.a.    8.69    n.a.    n.a.    8.71    n.a.    n.a.    8.62    n.a.    n.a.    8.34    n.a.
   24-mo. personal                 n.a.    n.a.   13.76    n.a.    n.a.   13.45    n.a.    n.a.   13.75    n.a.    n.a.   13.41    n.a.
   Credit card plan
    All accounts                   n.a.    n.a.   15.67    n.a.    n.a.   15.83    n.a.    n.a.   15.69    n.a.    n.a.   15.41    n.a.
    Accounts assessed interest     n.a.    n.a.   15.62    n.a.    n.a.   15.85    n.a.    n.a.   15.54    n.a.    n.a.   14.73    n.a.

New car loans at auto finance companies
  Interest rates                   6.47    6.20    6.07    6.02    6.23    6.00    5.92    6.33    6.79    6.43    6.22    6.43    6.31
  Maturity (months)                51.5    50.7    50.8    50.9    51.7    53.0    53.1    53.1    52.8    52.2    52.1    53.4    53.0
  Loan-to-value ratio                92      91      93      91      92      93      93      92      91      91      92      92      91
  Amount financed (dollars)      18,932  18,922  18,793  18,878  19,084  19,068  19,028  19,199  19,590  19,734  19,628  19,304  19,339
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This release is issued around the fifth business day of each month. The exact date and time may be obtained by calling (202) 452 - 3206.
Footnotes appear on reverse.



1
CONSUMER CREDIT OUTSTANDING
(Billions of dollars)
Not seasonally adjusted

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                                                                     1998                                                1999
                                _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________

                                 Mar.    Apr.     May    June    July    Aug.    Sept.   Oct.    Nov.    Dec.    Jan.   Feb. r  Mar. p
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total                           1,236.0 1,241.1 1,243.1 1,256.8 1,262.4 1,276.4 1,286.6 1,297.6 1,304.5 1,331.7 1,323.3 1,316.4 1,312.6

Major holders
Commercial banks                  492.1   500.1   497.3   491.4   491.4   498.2   497.9   502.1   498.8   508.9   507.3   497.8   487.6
Finance companies                 156.5   154.3   153.6   154.3   156.1   159.6   159.1   165.6   166.6   168.5   167.3   169.7   168.9
Credit unions                     150.7   151.1   152.2   152.4   153.5   153.6   154.3   155.0   155.2   155.4   155.7   155.2   155.0
Savings institutions               47.1    47.5    47.9    48.3    49.0    49.6    50.3    51.0    51.6    51.6    52.0    52.5    52.9
Nonfinancial business              72.7    65.1    65.2    65.3    65.5    66.0    65.5    66.0    66.6    74.9    71.0    68.0    67.1
Pools of securitized assets 5     316.8   323.1   326.9   345.1   346.9   349.4   359.4   358.0   365.6   372.4   370.0   373.3   381.0

Major types of credit 6
Automobile                        415.5   416.0   418.2   425.2   429.9   435.4   439.6   443.1   446.6   451.0   452.2   454.0   458.1
 Commercial banks                 153.9   151.3   151.7   150.9   153.2   155.5   156.3   156.8   157.1   158.1   160.3   159.9   159.3
 Finance companies                 86.8    90.6    89.6    89.9    91.7    95.3    96.2    97.6    99.0   103.1   102.8   105.0   104.7
 Pools of securitized assets 5     65.1    63.7    66.0    71.6    72.5    70.8    72.1    71.8    72.6    73.0    73.2    73.2    77.8

Revolving                         534.1   535.6   535.6   539.6   537.2   545.1   549.0   556.0   559.2   586.5   575.7   569.1   562.8
 Commercial banks                 201.3   209.2   207.3   200.9   197.6   200.4   197.6   200.9   196.9   210.3   204.8   197.6   188.7
 Finance companies                 36.6    30.4    30.5    29.9    29.4    29.6    28.4    33.3    33.1    32.3    32.4    32.2    32.3
 Nonfinancial business             41.2    33.5    33.4    33.5    33.8    34.0    33.7    33.8    33.8    39.2    36.4    34.3    33.7
 Pools of securitized assets 5    226.2   233.7   235.3   245.6   246.6   251.2   259.3   258.1   265.3   272.3   269.9   272.4   275.4

Other                             286.4   289.6   289.2   292.0   295.2   296.0   298.0   298.5   298.7   294.2   295.4   293.3   291.7
 Commercial banks                 136.9   139.7   138.3   139.6   140.6   142.2   144.0   144.4   144.8   140.5   142.2   140.2   139.6
 Finance companies                 33.0    33.4    33.5    34.4    35.0    34.7    34.6    34.6    34.6    33.1    32.1    32.5    32.0
 Nonfinancial business             31.5    31.6    31.8    31.7    31.7    32.0    31.8    32.2    32.9    35.7    34.6    33.6    33.4
 Pools of securitized assets 5     25.6    25.6    25.5    27.9    27.8    27.5    27.9    28.1    27.7    27.1    26.8    27.7    27.8
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1. Covers most short- and intermediate-term credit extended to individuals, excluding loans secured by real estate.
2. Percent changes calculated from unrounded data.
3. Comprises mobile home loans and all other loans not included in automobile or revolving credit, such as loans for education, boats,
trailers, or vacations. These loans may be secured or unsecured.
4. Interest rates are annual percentage rates (APR) as specified by the Federal Reserve's Regulation Z. Interest rates for new-car loans
and personal loans at commercial banks are simple unweighted averages of each bank's most common rate charged during the first calendar
week of the middle month of each quarter. For credit card accounts, the rate for all accounts is the stated APR averaged across all
credit card accounts at all reporting banks. The rate for accounts assessed interest is the annualized ratio of total finance charges at
all reporting banks to the total average daily balances against which the finance charges were assessed (excludes accounts for which no
finance charges were assessed). Finance company data are from the subsidiaries of the three major U.S. automobile manufacturers and are
volume-weighted averages covering all loans of each type purchased during the month.
5. Outstanding balances of pools upon which securities have been issued; these balances are no longer carried on the balance sheets of
the loan originators.
6. Includes estimates for holders that do not separately report consumer credit holding by type.
r=revised.  p=preliminary.