ISTANBUL

US household debt rose 1% to $18.8 trillion in the fourth quarter of last year, according to data released Tuesday by the New York Federal Reserve.

The increase showed a $191 billion rise from the previous quarter, also climbing $740 billion on an annual basis.

Mortgages continued to take the largest share of household debt in the US, rising last October-December to $13.2 trillion.

Mortgages shot up by $98 billion from the previous quarter and by $565 billion on an annual basis.

Other major debt categories for Americans during this period were auto loans at $1.67 trillion, student loans at $1.66 trillion, and credit cards at $1.28 trillion.

Auto loan debt rose by $12 billion in the fourth quarter, student loan debt by $11 billion, and credit card debt by $44 billion compared to the previous quarter.

The overall default rate worsened in the last quarter of last year, with 4.8% of outstanding debt in some form of default.