Despite some monthly volatility, the unemployment rate
remains on a downward trend and has fallen by 1/2 percentage point over the past year to reach 4.4 per cent in December.
Despite the increase in debt, the delinquency rate — defined as bills more than 90 days past due —
remains on a downward trend and now stands at just 1.1 per cent, Equifax said.
«While binge drinking among eighth, 10th, and 12th grade students
remains well below the levels seen a decade ago, the
downward trend in binge drinking appears to have slowed somewhat in recent years,» said George F. Koob, Ph.D., director of the National Institute
on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.