G.19                                                        CONSUMER CREDIT                        For release at 3 p.m. (Eastern Time)
1                                                            December 1997                                             February 6, 1998
 
Consumer credit outstanding increased at a 3.9 percent seasonally adjusted annual rate in December, after a drop in November.  In
December, auto credit rebounded; revolving credit outstanding was about unchanged after falling in November, and "other" credit
continued to run off.
 
 
CONSUMER CREDIT OUTSTANDING 1
Seasonally adjusted
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                                 1996                                                1997
                                _______ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
 
                                 Dec.    Jan.    Feb.    Mar.    Apr.     May    June    July   Aug. r  Sept. r Oct. r  Nov. r  Dec. p
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Percent change at annual rate 2
  Total                             0.4    10.0     5.7     1.9     9.0     3.3     2.2     4.3     6.1     1.6    11.4    -3.6     3.9
   Automobile                       6.0     3.3     1.2    -3.6    11.9     2.7     7.1    10.3    -0.3     7.5    13.9    -3.8    16.3
   Revolving                       10.3    14.7     9.4     0.5     6.9     4.6     4.2     9.4     8.0     6.2     8.7    -3.4     0.4
   Other 3                        -23.6    11.1     5.3    11.9     8.6     1.9    -7.9   -12.9    11.4   -14.3    12.9    -3.6    -7.1
 
Amount: billions of dollars
  Total                         1,179.9 1,189.7 1,195.4 1,197.3 1,206.2 1,209.5 1,211.7 1,216.1 1,222.2 1,223.9 1,235.5 1,231.9 1,235.8
   Automobile                     392.4   393.4   393.8   392.6   396.5   397.5   399.8   403.2   403.2   405.7   410.4   409.1   414.6
   Revolving                      499.2   505.3   509.3   509.5   512.4   514.3   516.2   520.2   523.7   526.4   530.2   528.7   528.9
   Other 3                        288.3   291.0   292.3   295.2   297.3   297.7   295.8   292.6   295.4   291.9   295.0   294.1   292.4
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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.    8.92    n.a.    n.a.    9.20    n.a.    n.a.    8.99    n.a.    n.a.    8.96    n.a.
   24-mo. personal                 n.a.    n.a.   13.46    n.a.    n.a.   13.81    n.a.    n.a.   13.84    n.a.    n.a.   14.50    n.a.
   Credit card plan
    All accounts                   n.a.    n.a.   15.88    n.a.    n.a.   15.75    n.a.    n.a.   15.78    n.a.    n.a.   15.65    n.a.
    Accounts assessed interest     n.a.    n.a.   15.13    n.a.    n.a.   15.72    n.a.    n.a.   15.79    n.a.    n.a.   15.57    n.a.
 
New car loans at auto finance companies
  Interest rates                   8.60    7.17    7.44    8.08    8.56    7.80    7.64    6.71    5.93    6.12    7.27    6.85    5.93
  Maturity (months)                52.3    55.1    54.6    53.5    52.8    53.2    53.3    54.6    55.5    55.4    54.4    53.7    53.5
  Loan-to-value ratio                90      92      92      90      91      93      93      94      93      93      92      91      92
  Amount financed (dollars)      17,670  17,090  16,837  17,198  17,620  18,060  18,171  18,281  18,329  18,520  18,779  18,923  19,121
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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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                                 1996                                                1997
                                _______ _______________________________________________________________________________________________
 
                                 Dec.    Jan.    Feb.    Mar.    Apr.     May    June    July   Aug. r  Sept. r Oct. r  Nov. r  Dec. p
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Total                           1,211.6 1,199.6 1,190.5 1,186.4 1,195.6 1,199.3 1,205.0 1,209.2 1,220.6 1,226.8 1,235.0 1,239.4 1,269.3
 
Major holders
Commercial banks                  526.8   521.4   512.9   504.3   510.3   511.6   510.7   514.5   516.2   507.5   507.3   508.6   514.9
Finance companies                 152.4   153.5   153.3   153.8   152.7   154.9   156.7   156.4   157.2   158.4   156.9   156.5   160.1
Credit unions                     144.1   144.2   143.4   143.9   145.6   146.7   147.6   149.0   149.8   150.7   151.5   151.8   153.7
Savings institutions               44.7    45.1    45.5    45.9    46.1    46.3    46.5    47.2    47.8    48.5    49.2    49.8    50.5
Nonfinancial business              77.7    73.6    70.6    70.0    69.3    67.7    68.0    67.6    68.6    68.7    68.5    70.4    78.9
Pools of securitized assets 5     265.8   261.8   264.8   268.5   271.6   272.1   275.6   274.6   281.0   293.0   301.6   302.3   311.2
 
Major types of credit 6
Automobile                        395.6   391.8   389.8   388.9   391.9   393.8   399.6   403.7   405.7   409.3   414.9   413.3   418.1
 Commercial banks                 157.0   156.1   155.0   153.7   154.2   155.2   156.0   157.8   158.5   157.2   158.1   156.8   155.3
 Finance companies                 86.7    86.8    87.1    85.8    83.2    85.1    87.0    88.3    88.4    88.5    86.8    86.0    87.0
 Pools of securitized assets 5     51.7    48.8    47.5    48.7    52.8    50.8    53.0    52.7    52.4    55.4    60.1    59.8    64.4
 
Revolving                         522.9   513.5   508.6   503.8   505.8   509.6   511.4   515.1   520.8   524.3   526.9   531.8   553.8
 Commercial banks                 228.6   223.2   215.8   207.3   209.3   212.8   213.3   219.0   217.5   209.3   208.8   211.2   217.5
 Finance companies                 32.5    32.3    32.2    34.1    35.1    35.2    34.9    33.5    33.5    34.9    34.8    34.9    38.7
 Nonfinancial business             44.9    41.9    39.8    39.4    39.0    37.1    37.3    36.8    37.6    37.7    37.5    38.9    45.0
 Pools of securitized assets 5    188.7   187.9   192.3   194.5   193.8   195.8   196.8   196.5   202.4   212.4   215.7   216.4   221.0
 
Other                             293.1   294.3   292.0   293.7   297.8   295.9   294.0   290.4   294.1   293.2   293.2   294.4   297.3
 Commercial banks                 141.1   142.1   142.2   143.3   146.8   143.6   141.4   137.7   140.2   141.0   140.4   140.6   142.1
 Finance companies                 33.2    34.4    34.0    34.0    34.3    34.7    34.8    34.7    35.2    35.0    35.3    35.5    34.4
 Nonfinancial business             32.8    31.7    30.8    30.5    30.4    30.7    30.7    30.8    31.1    31.0    31.1    31.6    33.9
 Pools of securitized assets 5     25.4    25.1    24.9    25.3    24.9    25.5    25.8    25.4    26.1    25.1    25.9    26.1    25.8
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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.