| |
WASHINGTON: American household wealth jumped in 2009 for the first time since a brutal recession struck the country, underscoring the impact of an economic recovery, data from the central bank showed Thursday.
The net worth of US households - the difference between their assets and liabilities - stood at US$54.18 trillion at the end of last year, a 5.4 per cent increase from the previous year, the Federal Reserve said.
The last time Americans saw their net worth increase on an annual basis was in 2007, when the United States plunged into recession in December of that year following a home mortgage meltdown.
Most of the rise in net worth stemmed from easing household debt.
US household debt fell 1.7 per cent in 2009 - the first annual drop since the Fed began gauging household borrowing data in 1946.
It marks a big change from the massive borrowing in the run up to the recession.
- AFP/sc
|
