41.   Consumer debt is also at a record high, making it less feasible for many people to take on mortgages.

42.   Consumer debt is high.

43.   Consumer debt likely started slowing in February, analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News said.

44.   Coping with those consumer debts is a process of making a plan and having the gumption to stick to it.

45.   During a flight home from Purdue University in Indiana, McCoy read a magazine article about young adults burdened by consumer debt.

46.   Even the possibility of higher interest rates and increasing consumer debt should not pose much of a threat to growth in retail sales, he said.

47.   For businesses, productivity advances have been the key to higher profit margins, since intense competition and rising consumer debt have made it tough to raise prices.

48.   For sure, consumers are carrying huge amounts of consumer debt.

49.   For that reason, consumer debt here has ballooned over the last decade, as many families live beyond their means, some analysts say.

50.   For businesses, productivity advances have been the key to higher profit margins, since intense competition and rising consumer debt have made it hard to raise prices.