Credit card lines nationwide are set to be cut by another $1.5 trillion before the economy bottoms, on top of a $1.2 trillion cut from the peak, the analyst Meredith Whitney predicted Monday.
Unless credit loosens up dramatically for Main Street, small businesses will stymie a recovery, she wrote in a report to clients.
Credit cards are a particular source of concern, as roughly four out of five use them as vital portion of their overall funding, Whitney wrote.