US consumer borrowing increases $14 billion in November

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumers boosted their borrowing in November, as higher credit card spending offset slower growth in auto and student loans.

The Federal Reserve says consumer borrowing rose $14 billion in November to a fresh record high of $3.53 trillion. Economists believe that strong job gains in the labor market will boost consumer confidence and convince households to finance purchases by taking on more debt.

For November, the category that covers credit cards increased $5.7 billion after a much smaller $65 million gain in October.

The category that covers auto loans and student loans rose by $8.3 billion. That was the smallest monthly gain for this category in more than three years, since an increase of $8.17 billion in February 2012.