Measuring U.S. Credit Card Borrowing: An Analysis of the G.19's Estimate of Consumer Revolving Credit
FRB of Philadelphia Payment Cards Center Discussion Paper No. 06-03
35 Pages Posted: 8 Jun 2006
Date Written: April 2006
Abstract
This paper, by Mark Furletti and Christopher Ody, describes the Federal Reserve System's monthly estimate of revolving consumer credit as published in the G.19 statistical release. It analyzes the source data, sampling methods, and calculations on which this estimate currently relies. In addition, it proposes a framework for analyzing the revolving credit statistic and suggests modifications to how the estimate is calculated and presented. The paper concludes that the revolving credit estimate is highly accurate and proposes that the System consider five modifications that would improve its usefulness to researchers.
Keywords: Consumer credit, Credit cards, Debt
JEL Classification: E51, B41
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation