ECONOMY

Consumers Taking on New Debts Again: Consumers reversed course this fall and again began taking on new debt, including a 1.3% increase in October, the steepest jump in six months, the Federal Reserve Board reported. The Fed said consumer credit advanced a seasonally adjusted $802 million after a sharply revised 0.1% gain a month earlier. The September estimate originally had been a 2.5% drop in debt. They were the first gains since installment debt jumped 1.9% in April. Consumer credit includes all consumer loans except mortgages and home-equity debt. The increased debt all was charged on credit cards. Revolving credit advanced 6.9%, or $1.3 billion, in October. Still, that was slower than the 13.7% jump in September.