In news that could signify a whole gamut of different economic conditions, the Federal Reserve has announced that Americans’ consumer borrowing rose unexpectedly in January, the first gain in a year. –JCL

The BBC:

Borrowing by US consumers rose for the first time in a year in January, according to the Federal Reserve.

The central bank said consumer credit rose 2.4% or $5bn (£3.3bn) from December 2009 to a total of $2.45 trillion in the first month of 2010.

It was the first gain after a record 11 straight declines and it was the largest increase since July 2008.

Analysts were expecting a $4.5bn decrease in January following a $4.6bn fall in December.

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