US consumers are leaning harder on debt

US households are fighting inflation with debt.
Total consumer credit surged by 25 billion dollars in March to a record 5.14 trillion dollars.
Credit card debt jumped by 10 billion dollars to 1.34 trillion dollars, while auto and student loans pushed non-revolving credit to a record 3.80 trillion dollars.
Since 2020, total consumer credit has increased by more than 1 trillion dollars.
That is not a clean sign of strength.
It is a sign consumers are stretching to keep up.