Consumers have greater ability to take on credit card debt

In the month of September, the amount consumers were allowed to borrow on their credit cards grew once again as lenders continued to issue more new accounts.

The latest National Credit Trends Report from the credit monitoring bureau Equifax showed that the number of credit cards issued in September increased for both banks and retailers, and with those rates rose the amount of credit card debt consumers are allowed to take on, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. The year-over-year increases are likely the result of improving rates of delinquency and default observed by all major lenders.

New bank-issued credit cards rose to a total of 21.6 million in September, up 25.3 percent over the same month last year, and private-label store-issued cards jumped 6.9 percent to 18.2 million, the report said. Meanwhile, credit lines on those new cards rose 25.4 percent to $83.3 billion for bank-issued accounts and 4.3 percent to $31.7 billion on store cards.

Most experts believe that greater consumer awareness of the issues associated with large amounts of credit card debt led to the decreased delinquency and default, as more shied away from borrowing and made increased efforts to pay down their balances.