World's Biggest Debtor Nation- America On Top Again

[Jcrowley]

World's Biggest Debtor Nation

America On Top Again

By DON MONKERUD

The typical American family is buried in debt. According to the Federal Reserve Fund, household debt equals almost 25 percent of net household worth, or 136 percent of disposable income. After wages fell behind inflation for a decade, Americans mortgaged their homes and ran up their credit cards to cover living expenses.

In 2005, Americans spent $42 billion more than they earned, and the most recent report from the Commerce Department found savings rates at a negative one percent, the lowest since the Great Depression, and down from 11 percent after WWII. Only four times have savings rates fallen so low: The other two were during the Great Depression when a quarter of the workforce was unemployed and Americans spent their savings for essentials such as food and rent.

Today's debtors are taking advantage of the lowest interest rates in 40 years by borrowing money from their houses and against their paychecks to buy new cars and make home improvements. They also pay over $1.4 trillion in debt service, or 10 percent of the gross domestic product. The credit card industry alone generates over $30 billion in annual profits.

http://counterpunch.org/monkerud03242007.html

[baldguy]

1. Thank you Ronald Reagan.

He's the one who started paying our debts off with China's credit card.

[PDJane]

2. Thank Bush too..........

Because real debt has increased by 30Trillion dollars under his watch, according to the GAO.