Household Debt Relative to Income in Canada Declines in Q1, Reports Statistics Canada

June 13, 2024 TruthUSA

According to Statistics Canada, Canadians’ debt relative to their income in the first quarter of 2024 decreased compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, as the growth in household disposable income exceeded the growth in debt.

The agency reported that household credit market debt as a percentage of household disposable income was 176.4 percent in the first three months of the year on a seasonally adjusted basis, down from 178.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Essentially, there was $1.76 in credit market debt for every dollar of household disposable income in the first quarter of 2024.

Additionally, the household debt service ratio, which measures total obligated payments of principal and interest on credit market debt as a percentage of household disposable income, was 14.91 percent in the first quarter of 2024, slightly lower than the 14.98 percent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2023.

This change occurred as household disposable income increased by 1.9 percent, while debt payments rose by 1.4 percent.