Americans appear to finally be curbing their spending habits as credit card delinquencies continue to rise and credit dries up. The number of consumers borrowing from their credit cards dropped dramatically, according to a report yesterday put out by the Federal Reserve. Earlier this month, we also saw data from Mastercard that suggested that people are shifting their spending from discretionary items to staples like groceries and gas. Combined, these things point to a consumer that is finally starting to slow down. However, it may be too late for many as credit card delinquencies rise more than ever before. Those that find themselves in such debt should contact a debt settlement company that can help reduce and consolidate their outstanding unsecured debt. Call 866-559-DEBT (3328) for a free consultation.

From the Wall Street Journal:
Credit-card delinquencies are rising across the nation, a sign that some Americans are at the end of their rope financially. And these mounting delinquencies, in turn, have prompted banks to tighten lending standards, keeping people who have maxed out their cards from finding new sources of credit. The result could be a sharp pullback in consumer spending that would further weaken the slowing U.S. economy. Such a pullback may already be taking shape. Yesterday, the Federal Reserve reported an abrupt slowdown in consumers' credit-card borrowings. In December, Americans had $944 billion in total revolving debt, most of it on credit cards, a seasonally adjusted annualized increase of 2.7%. That was off sharply from seasonally adjusted growth rates of 13.7% in November and 11.1% in October. And it reflects the volatility in consumers' spending habits as economic growth sputters.