By Saeed Azhar
NEW YORK, Dec 3 (Reuters) – U.S. consumer finances remain broadly healthy, even though there are some signs of stress for borrowers with lower credit scores, Brendan Coughlin, president of Citizens Financial Group , said on Wednesday.
“I don’t see any macro signs of stress,” Coughlin said on a panel at the Reuters NEXT conference in New York. “If you were to really look squinty-eyed, you’d see it in the near prime and subprime, but it’s just not a big enough segment to have a macroeconomic impact.”
U.S. consumer confidence sagged in November as households worried about jobs and their financial situation, likely in part because of the recently ended government shutdown.
Fitch Ratings said last month consumer credit risk is increasing, particularly among lower-income borrowers facing high interest rates, eroding savings and rising unemployment.
Sean Murray, chief products officer of Barclays U.S. Consumer Bank, told Reuters after the session he feels good in the area of credit cards and consumer lending.
“From my perspective, I feel optimistic actually about it,” he said. Murray said spending has continued to rise and the holiday season has been a good one.
Barclays ranks as the ninth largest credit card issuer in the United States with 20 million customers, primarily through co-branded cards issued on behalf of some of the top U.S. brands such as Gap and Microsoft Xbox, according to its website.
(Reporting by Saeed Azhar; Editing by Lananh Nguyen and Lisa Shumaker)
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