Consumer borrowing falls for 9th straight month

WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve says consumers borrowed less for a record ninth straight month in October. It was another sign that consumer spending will remain weak, making it harder for the economy to mount a sustained rebound.

The Fed says consumer credit fell at an annual rate of $3.5 billion in October, although that’s significantly lower than the $9.3 billion decline that economists had expected.

The Fed report says consumer credit overall dropped at an annual rate of 1.7 percent in October, compared with a 4.2 percent drop in September.

Demand for revolving credit, the category that includes credit cards, fell 9.3 percent, while borrowing in the category that includes auto loans rose at an annual rate of 2.6 percent.

(This version CORRECTS amount in headline to $3.5 billion sted $9.5 billion.)