• In April, the start of a widespread recession caused by the pandemic, consumer confidence plummeted due to rising unemployment and concerns about the future.
• As the pandemic continued to affect the economy, the Fed took drastic measures including unlimited quantitative easing, and lowering interest rates to practically zero.
• These measures made it easier for consumers to spend, resulting in a surge of credit card spending in the third quarter.
• Consequently, balances on credit cards also rose across the board, leading to the new record high of $1.08 trillion.
• This trend is expected to continue as the pandemic wages on and people remain uncertain of their financial situations.
