Percentage of indebted families falls to 55,6% in January, says CNC.
Data from the National Confederation of Commerce of Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC) indicates that the percentage of families with some type of debt closed the first month of the year at 55,6%, the lowest result since the 54% recorded in June 2010; in December of last year, this percentage was 56,6%, a result 0,1 percentage point lower; according to CNC economist Marianne Hanson, the drop is related to the fact that "many families received their thirteenth salary, which allowed them to pay off debts, in addition to the reduction in credit, associated with lower family consumption."
Nielmar de Oliveira, Reporter for Agência Brasil - Data released today (2) by the National Confederation of Trade in Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC) indicates that the percentage of families with some type of debt closed the first month of the year at 55,6%, the lowest result since the 54% recorded in June 2010, which was the lowest in the historical series that began in January of the same year.
In December of last year, this percentage was 56,6%, a result 0,1 percentage point lower. In January 2016, the percentage reached 61,6%, in this case an even higher level of debt: a difference of 6 percentage points.
The figures are part of the Consumer Indebtedness and Default Survey (Peic), compiled by the CNC, which attributed the improvement to the seasonality of the period. Despite the reduction in the percentage of indebted families, in January the percentage of defaulters – families with no prospects of paying their debts – increased by 0,6 percentage points from December 2016 to January of this year.
According to CNC economist Marianne Hanson, the drop is related to the fact that "many families received their thirteenth salary, which allowed them to pay off debts, in addition to the reduction in credit, associated with lower household consumption."
default
Data from the CNC indicates that the percentage of families with debts or overdue bills at the beginning of the year was 22,7%, 0,03 percentage points lower than the 23% in December 2016. In this case, the lowest level since November 2015. In the annual comparison, the index fell by 1 percentage point.
Meanwhile, the percentage of families who said they will not be able to pay their debts and will therefore remain in default has increased, rising from 8,7% in December of last year to 9,3% in January of this year.
In January of last year, that percentage was 9%.
According to the CNC, there was also a "slight" increase in the proportion of families who declared themselves to be heavily indebted. In December 2016, this percentage was 13,8%, rising to 13,9% of all families in January of this year. In the annual comparison (January 2016 and January 2017), there was an increase of 0,3 percentage points.
Delay period
The research revealed that the average delay in debt payments increased year-on-year, rising from 64 days in January 2016 to 65 days in January 2017.
On average, debt repayment terms were 7 months, with 33% having debts for more than a year.
Among indebted families, 21,2% have more than half of their monthly income committed to debt payments. For 77,3% of those in debt, credit cards remain the main type of debt, followed by installment plans (14,1%) and, in third place, car financing (10,1%).
The National Consumer Indebtedness and Default Survey (Peic Nacional) has been conducted monthly by the CNC since January 2010. The data is collected in all state capitals and the Federal District, in a survey conducted with approximately 18 consumers.