U.S. households recover at faster pace
The net worth of American households inched higher during the first three months of 2010, rising at about twice the pace as the previous quarter, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.
Household net worth, the difference between assets and liabilities, rose to $54.6 trillion in the first quarter of 2010, up about 2% from $53.5 trillion in the fourth quarter. That’s the fastest rate of increase since the second quarter of 2009, and faster than the 1% climb in the previous quarter, the final three months of last year payday loans for bad credit.
Although the figure marked the fourth consecutive quarterly rise, it remained well below the highs seen in 2007. Net worth peaked at about $65.9 trillion in the second quarter of that year.
The rebound in household net worth came in part on the back of the rising value of investment portfolios. During the first quarter, stock market holdings rose 4% to $7.9 trillion.