Average holiday debt jumps to $1,550 — an 8-year high
CBSN
Americans are now dealing with the aftermath of completing their holiday shopping during the highest inflation in four decades, with the average holiday debt load soaring 24% from last year to almost $1,550 — the highest amount in the eight years that LendingTree has tracked the trend.
To be sure, not everyone is going into debt, with LendingTree finding in its December survey of 2,050 U.S. consumers that about one-third of Americans took on holiday debt in 2022. But for those who accrued charges on their credit cards, the debt load is the highest since 2015.
While inflation is showing signs of cooling, consumers are grappling with still-high costs as well as rising interest rates, which have made it more expensive to carry credit card debt or take out loans. For the many Americans who are making financial resolutions for 2023, reducing debt is often at the top of the list.
Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, in a nearly hour-long speech on the U.S. House floor Monday, accused her ex-fiancé of physically abusing her, recording sex acts with her and others without their consent, and conspiring with business associates in acts of rape and sexual misconduct.
A German court on Monday sentenced a husband and wife to life in prison for killing two Ukrainian refugees, the mother and grandmother of a newborn girl they planned to abduct and pass off as their own.
Nothing says Valentine's Day like a classic bouquet of red roses — but that romantic gesture might cost more than you expect this year.
HAVANA, Fla. — For a rural community, this town of 1,750 people has been more fortunate than most. A family doctor has practiced here for the last 30 years.
Toronto police have arrested and charged a man with first-degree murder 26 years after a pregnant woman was strangled and found dead at a parking lot.
The Pentagon is changing the name of the military base Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg, reversing a decision made by a congressionally mandated commission to rename bases that honor Confederate generals.
President Trump issued an ultimatum to Hamas, saying that if all Israeli hostages are not released from Gaza by noon Saturday, then "all hell is going to break loose."
As vaccination rates decline, widespread outbreaks of diseases like measles and polio could reemerge
Health officials in western Texas are trying to contain a measles outbreak among mostly school-aged children, with at least 15 confirmed cases. It's the latest outbreak of a disease that had been virtually eliminated in the U.S., and it comes as vaccination rates are declining — jeopardizing the country's herd immunity from widespread outbreaks.
One person was killed and at least three others were injured in Scottsdale, Arizona, after a business jet crashed into another plane after it landed on Monday.
Washington — The Department of Justice told federal prosecutors in New York to drop their corruption case against New York Mayor Eric Adams, citing his "restricted" ability to help the Trump administration enforce its immigration policies.
Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, is selling T-shirts on his website bearing a swastika, the symbol of the Nazi Party adopted by Adolf Hitler in 1920.
Washington — President Trump on Monday removed the director of the Office of Government Ethics, the independent agency responsible for overseeing ethics rules and financial disclosures for the executive branch.
A battle to replace Kentucky GOP Sen. Mitch McConnell is starting to shape up — even though the former majority leader hasn't announced that he's planning to leave the Senate.