Canadian consumer debt reached $2.4 trillion, according to Equifax® Canada’s most recent Market Pulse consumer credit trends and insights report. Despite a sluggish mortgage market, non-mortgage debt showed a seasonal rise in the second quarter of 2023, with credit card balances reaching an all-time high of $107.4 billion.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Non-mortgage debt continued to grow in Q2 2023, largely due to substantial growth in credit card balances and a notable increase in debt among subprime and deep subprime consumers.
- Fewer consumers were able to pay their credit card balance in full each month during the second quarter, with close to 500K more active credit card users not paying their balances in full as of June 2023 when compared to 12 months ago.
- A 19.8 per cent year-over-year increase in 90+ days balance delinquencies for credit cards.
- Financial products with variable interest rates, such as unsecured lines of credit and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), are experiencing a faster rise in delinquencies year-over-year. The 30+ days balance delinquency rate for unsecured lines of credit significantly exceeded Q2 2019 levels.
Read the full report here