According to the Federal Reserve the first increase in credit-card debt since the financial crisis hit helped to boost overall consumer borrowing 3 percent in December, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2.41 trillion.

Americans are putting more money on their credit cards after more than two years of cutting back, a sign that they are gaining confidence in the economy.

Martin Crutsinger, WASHINGTON (AP) —

Borrowing in the category that includes credit cards rose 3.5 percent, the first rise since August 2008. Borrowing on auto loans increased 2.8 percent.
Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, viewed the gain as an encouraging sign that households are becoming more confidence about the economy and jobs. He also said banks are loosening some lending restrictions put in place after the financial crisis.

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More people are paying down their credit card balances. AP reported that the amount consumers owed on credit cards in the second quarter “dropped to the lowest level in more than 8 years.” According to figures provided by TransUnion, the average combined debt for bank-issued credit cards dropped to just under $4,951 in the three months ended June 30 – that’s down more than 13 percent from $5,719 in the same period a year ago.

Ezra Becker, director of consulting and strategy in TransUnion’s financial services unit said more borrowers are making on-time payments, and the rate of cardholders past due by 90 days or more also fell .92 percent down from 1.17 percent last year.