Young borrowers struggle as loan delinquencies on the rise.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has released its quarterly report on household debt and credit, which reveals that credit card balances have increased by $50 billion to $1.13 trillion, and auto loan balances rose by $12 billion to $1.61 trillion, putting greater strain on younger borrowers’ finances. The report also shows that an annualised 8.5% of credit card balances and 7.7% of auto loans have transitioned into delinquency status. In addition, the delinquency rates for credit card debt held by borrowers between the ages of 18 and 29 stood at 9.6% at the end of 2023, up from 7.6% the previous year, while 4.8% of auto loans were in serious delinquencies for consumers aged between 18 and 29, compared to 4.3% in 2022.