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Here is a photo that shows why consumer credit has been on the rise. This photo is showing that interest rates are lower and this allows the consumer to borrow more as explained earlier.

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This is an image showing how the Consumer credit excluding mortgages has grown since 2012. In 2012 total outstanding balances was 503, 840 in millions. Whereas in 2016 it was 558,110 in millions. That is a very large increase but also shows that the economy has been picking up.

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This image is showing that Canada owes the most in the G7. I choose this image to show how Canada compares to the other comparable countries. I think a large part of this is due to Canada's housing market right now.

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This is a very good video for first learning about consumer credit. The person in the video talks about the different types of consumer credit. Type one, non installment credit, which is a charged account, monthly payments are made in this type based purely on how much you put on that card. Type two, Installment credit which is an account that you make payments of a set amount every two weeks or month however you have it structured. Type three, Revolving credit, which means the price you are paying goes up and down like a credit line. What I found interesting about this video is that each type is explained both their similarities and their differences. It ties in very well with how each type affects the economy.

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The main reason for choosing this video is it was actually held at Durham College. I found that very interesting and I learned a lot through this video. One of the main topics was the housing market, there were plenty of questions asked about the housing market, about student financial and about consumer credit. I found it interesting because this couldn't be scripted. This was a live stream and questions were asked and it was a good way to hear about on going concerns from people very involved in financial fields but also from interested people who may not no as much about the topics. They touched on where the province of Ontario is right now in terms of the economy and how the increase of the housing market could affect the economy and some plans in place to slow that down.

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On Tuesday, 28 March 2017, Stephen S. Poloz, the Governor of the Bank of Canada, will deliver a speech at Durham College, organized in partnership with the University of Ontario Institute of Technology and Trent University. Approximately 11:10 (ET) Le mardi 28 mars 2017, le gouverneur de la Banque du Canada, M.

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This article is on household debt. In 2015 the numbers for household debt reached the highest they have been. This article is important because it is showing that the consumer credit is very high which in turn is good for the Canadian economy but also some different effects on household debt. This article talks about how interest rates have been very low in recent years and how that affects someones desire to take on more debt. With the interest rates being lower there is less of a fear to have more debt and with that the economy is growing as people are buying more.

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Canadians ended 2015 with a record-high debt burden, as low interest rates and still-soaring regional housing markets fuelled the fastest year of household debt growth since 2011.

Statistics Canada reported Friday that the ratio of household credit-market debt to disposable income, the key measure of the debt load, rose to 165.4 per cent in the final quarter of the year, eclipsing the upwardly revised previous record of 164.5 per cent in the third quarter. That means that at the end of the year, households held more than $1.65 in debt for every dollar of annual disposable income.

For all of 2015, household debt rose 4.9 per cent, the fastest pace in four years, to a record $1.92-trillion. That included a 6.3-per-cent surge in mortgage debt, also the fastest since 2011, reflecting low borrowing costs and surging real estate prices in key regions, especially in Toronto and Vancouver. Disposable income, meanwhile, grew by a more modest 3 per cent.

Canada's household debt-to-income ratio had eased from record levels in the first half of last year, but picked up again in the second half, after the Bank of Canada cut interest rates in July for the second time in the year.

Debt rose 1.2 per cent in the fourth quarter, amid persistent low interest rates, while disposable income crept up 0.6 per cent, the slowest since the first quarter, reflecting renewed sluggishness of the economy. Fourth-quarter gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of just 0.8 per cent.

"Interest rates have been hovering at a low level for a long time, which has played a significant role in spurring Canadians' appetite for taking on more debt," said Scott Hannah, chief executive officer of the Credit Counselling Society, a non-profit consumer debt-counselling group, in a news release.

Statscan said total household credit-market debt (mortgages plus consumer credit) rose 1.2 per cent in the fourth quarter. Mortgage debt rose 1.6 per cent, while consumer credit (which includes credit cards, car loans, personal lines of credit and other personal loans) rose a more modest 0.3 per cent. Mortgage debt accounts for about two-thirds of total household debt.

But measured against total assets and total net worth, Canadians' household debt ratio actually edged down slightly in the fourth quarter, to 17.1 per cent and 20.6 per cent, respectively. The country's total household net worth rose 1.6 per cent in the quarter, to a record $9.48-trillion, helped by healthier financial markets, a weak Canadian dollar that lifted the value of foreign holdings and continued strength in home values. But Statscan noted that for the full year, households' financial assets grew a modest 5.4 per cent, down from about 8 per cent in each of the previous three years, "as the domestic market weakened considerably in 2015."

"While only improving modestly, these metrics indicate that, in aggregate, households have a sizable cushion to absorb the impact of an unforeseen macroeconomic shock," said Royal Bank of Canada economist Laura Cooper in a research note.

The Bank of Canada has long expressed concern about the elevated levels of household debt, which pose a potential risk to Canada's financial stability in the event of a sharp economic downturn that would strain consumers' capacity to meet their debt payments. Earlier this week, the central bank noted that "financial vulnerabilities continue to edge higher."

"The emerging slowdown in consumer credit accumulation suggests households may be heeding the perpetual warnings about the vulnerabilities created by elevated debt levels, although the sustained uptrend in mortgage balances tempers this enthusiasm," Ms. Cooper said.

She noted that new federal government regulations that took effect last month, raising down-payment requirements on homes between $500,000 and $1-million, "may curb the appetite for mortgage loans to some extent, which would help to pour some cold water on the sustained uptrend in outstanding mortgage balances."

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Canadian household debt soars to yet another record

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Canadians ended 2015 with a record-high debt burden, as low interest rates and still-soaring regional housing markets fuelled the fastest year of household debt growth since 2011.

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This video is a conference style video where they discuss things such as Canada's financal system, the housing market and some of Canada's vulnerabilities. I found this video very informative as it touched on a wide variety of topics. Not all touched on the consumer credit but it was very helpful in explaining more on the housing effects on economy and also some vulnerabilities it causes. The video talk about how the housing market continues to grow and grow and how this applies pressure on families but also on the economy as the first website talked about this slows down the economy.

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2016-12-15 FSR Press Conference / Conférence de presse RSF

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The overall level of risk to Canada's financial system remains largely unchanged from six months ago. The Bank continues to highlight two key vulnerabilities related to Canadian households: high levels of indebtedness and housing market imbalances. A third ongoing vulnerability is the fragile fixed-income market liquidity.

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This was a great article all about the consumer credit and how it is changing and how that change is affecting the economy. In this website they talk about how much the borrowing has grown from last year to this (4.1%). It explains how important it is for consumers and companies buy and borrow more. It was published in 2014 but still has a lot of useful facts and it talks about how from 2010 to 2013 the consumer credit remained about the same and how this year is great for the economy and has the biggest spikes since 2009.

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OTTAWA - Just like cholesterol, there is such a thing as good debt and bad debt. It all depends on the relative health of companies and consumers, and who they are consulting.

While credit growth among Canadian households and businesses edged up in March, the appetite for residential mortgages has stabilized at the same time as the frenzied housing market is showing signs of moderation.

That's good news. At least consumers are still borrowing and spending - albeit with more discipline, even if they have added some extra weight to their bottom line. The same goes for companies, who have steadily raised their financing levels over recent months.

Overall household borrowing grew in March at a year-over-year rate of 4.1%, up from 4% in February, according to a study by RBC Economics, released Tuesday.

Residential mortgage growth was unchanged at 5% in March for the fourth consecutive month, RBC said. Outstanding balances of non-mortgage loans - such as credit cards, personal loans and lines of credit - rose 2% in March from a year earlier, following increases of 1.7% in January and 1.9% in February.

"Residential mortgage growth has stabilized in recent months and upside risks of renewed momentum are likely to be contained as housing activity is forecast to gradually moderate after a prolonged period of robust price and sales gains," RBC said.

A brief period of financial frugality seems to be ending as consumer credit growth is on the rise

"In contrast, the emergence from cycle-lows for consumer credit indicates households have increased their appetite for non-mortgage loans," it added. "With offsetting effects, overall low rates of household credit growth will likely be sustained."

Now the bad news, if indeed it is.

"A brief period of financial frugality seems to be ending as consumer credit growth is on the rise," RBC warned.

"After expanding at its slowest rate in two decades late last year, the first quarter of 2014 has seen the pace pick up."

All combined, the evolving scenario would see the Bank of Canada holding the line on its trendsetting interest rate at 1%, where it has been since the last hike back in September 2010.

Bank governor Stephen Poloz has been keeping his options open - in other words, not signaling whether the next rate move will be up or down - as he monitors currently low inflation trends for signs of welcome price increases, which would signal strengthening economic growth.

In that case, most economists expect the bank's next move will be a rate increase, most likely in mid-to-late 2015.

Avery Shenfeld, chief economist at CIBC World Markets, also sees higher borrowing costs on the horizon, but seems less concerned about household and corporate debt levels along the way.

"Used judiciously, debt is the lifeblood of economic growth," he said in a report, also released on Tuesday.

"Growing economies depend on leverage, particularly in the early stage of a cycle when it helps kick-start the job and income gains that can later step in to fuel spending."

Facetiously titled, Debt is Not a Four-Letter Word, Mr. Shenfeld suggests Canada is "long past the peak lift from government and household leverage. There's no reason to raise alarm bells over household debt."

"Those prudent Swiss, for example, carry a higher debt-to- income ratio with no clear signs of trouble. But a diminished appetite for additional consumer leverage, and a [Canadian government] regulator that is poised to step in again should house prices and mortgage debt not slow on their own, will be growth hurdles ahead," Mr. Shenfeld points out.

"While Canadians worry about too much household debt, what the economy really needs is an appetite for taking on debt and risk at the corporate level," he adds.

"Encouragingly, growth in long term debt is running at its fastest pace since 2004, and overall business credit growth is running at over 7%. That war chest could be a sign that businesses are preparing to step up, but it has yet to show up in their capital spending plans in Canada."

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Appetite for debt: How the economy benefits when consumers and companies borrow more

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OTTAWA - Just like cholesterol, there is such a thing as good debt and bad debt. It all depends on the relative health of companies and consumers, and who they are consulting. While credit growth among Canadian households and businesses edged up in March, the appetite for residential mortgages has stabilized at the same time as the frenzied housing market is showing signs of moderation.

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In this website it talks about the effect of mortgage on consumer credit and the economy. I find this really interesting because I thought that something like a mortgage would count as a part of consumer credit. I choose this article because it explains how mortgage borrowing has expanded and how it slows done consumer credit which in turn slows down the economy.  This article explains how with the rising house prices affect interest rates and consumer credit

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In this pallet you can expect to learn about the importance of consumer credit on economy. This will mainly be focused on Canada. A general definition of consumer credit is the debt that occurs when you purchase something on a credit card such as a television.

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Importance of Consumer Credit on Economy 

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Importance of Consumer Credit on Economy 

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By: Colin Jex