Rise in borrowing by US businesses sparks hopes of a global recovery Consumer credit overall has been rising for 19 months or so, so a March dip was not unexpected. We don't expect it to continue in that [downward] direction," said Erik Johnson, US economist at IHS Global Insight. Rising home and equity prices have afforded many the opportunity to take advantage of historically low interest rates and make purchases on big-ticket items such as vehicles. The increase in borrowing is likely to trigger alarm bells in some quarters keen to prevent a repeat of the spiralling credit culture that sparked the financial crisis in the first place. However, borrowing by households and businesses outside the finance sector is still a fraction of the $2.2 trillion that was on loan in 2007, and economists claim banks have become "so wary" that they are unlikely to lend money in the same reckless fashion as before. "We will see [consumer borrowing] trending up but there is going to be some semblance of a new normal where banks and credit card companies are going to guard against a repeat of before," Mr Johnson said. Borrowing is expected to surpass pre-crash levels eventually, but the key concern will be how fast consumer credit increases rather than the overall amount. The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a new record high on Wednesday. The stock market index topped the 15,000 mark for the first time this week, buoyed by investor confidence in the US recovery. It had climbed a further 10.93 to 15,067.13 by lunchtime in New York. Scott Wren, a strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors, said the market could continue to climb but cautioned that a correction was likely. "I do think the market is ahead of itself," he said.