The Consumer Credit Report for January 2010 was released by the Federal Reserve last Friday, showing a modest gain in total consumer credit. The trend has been declining since 2008, with 2009 total credit going into the negative, representing a contraction in the credit market.

The most dramatic drops have been in revolving credit. This trend did not change for this report. Most non-revolving loans are collateralized, whereas revolving credit is represented mainly by credit cards and revolving credit lines at banks and credit unions. Declines in both markets were seen throughout 2009, with revolving credit bearing the brunt of the contraction.

The pace of contraction in the non-revolving credit market has slowed a bit since November of 2009, but is still contracting nonetheless. Revolving credit shows modest increases for the second straight month, with January 2010 representing the first month since 2008 with gains in overall credit.

Carlton Smith is a Project Manager and Programmer living in Southeast Michigan. He is also the founder and Executive Editor of the web literary magazine Troubadour21.com. His blog can be found at UncleSol.net. Email Carlton at carlton@unclesol.net