Personal Bankruptcies on a Record Pace

Americans filed for personal bankruptcy at a record pace in the second quarter, figures from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts show.

Personal bankruptcies totaled 390,991 for April to June, a 5.9% increase from the previous three months and the most for any quarter, the courts office said.

That brought the number of such filings over the previous 12 months to an all-time high of 1.47 million.

Americans had a record $11.2 trillion in personal debt at the start of the second quarter after purchasing cars, clothing and other goods at a breakneck pace in the second half of the 1990s.