Wire report

Credit card debt surges in U.S. as high interest rates make it harder to pay off

Americans owe more than a trillion dollars in credit card debt, up 60% from just five years ago. Meanwhile, higher interest rates make debt even more difficult to pay off, a downward spiral causing credit card delinquencies to surge. Economics correspondent Paul Solman explains.

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Americans owe more than a trillion dollars in credit card debt, up 60% from just five years ago. Meanwhile, higher interest rates make debt even more difficult to pay off, a downward spiral causing credit card delinquencies to surge. Economics correspondent Paul Solman explains.

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According to PBS News’s linked report, Credit card debt surges in U.S. as high interest rates make it harder to pay off, Americans owe more than a trillion dollars in credit card debt, up 60% from just five years ago. Meanwhile, higher interest rates make debt even more difficult to pay off, a downward spiral causing credit card delinquencies to surge. Economics correspondent Paul Solman explains.

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The development sits in VINI’s News coverage for readers following public-interest developments across VINI coverage areas. The original report is linked so readers can check the source account, follow later updates, and compare new coverage against the first published record. The linked report is dated 2026-08-11T22:30:22+00:00.

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Primary source: Credit card debt surges in U.S. as high interest rates make it harder to pay off via PBS News. VINI cites and links the source; it does not reproduce the publisher’s full article text without rights clearance.

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