Household debt growth accelerated a bit in March, as credit card balances surged, according to new data from Statistics Canada.
The national statistical agency reported that total household borrowing rose by $10.1 billion in the month to $3.06 trillion.
Month over month, household debt was up by 0.3%, with borrowing rising 4% on an annualized basis, up from 3.9% in February.
While mortgage debt was up by 0.3% in the month, other forms of borrowing rose by 0.4% in the month — up sharply from the 0.1% monthly increase recorded in February.
Specifically, credit card balances rose by 0.8% in March, which was the largest monthly increase of the year — whereas, outstanding home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) and other kinds of non-mortgage borrowing were up by 0.3% in the month.
At the same time, total borrowing by private non-financial corporations contracted by $5.8 billion to $2.24 trillion in March.
The 0.3% decline in corporate debt — including outstanding loans and debt securities — came in the wake of a 0.6% increase in February.