Among credit unions, credit card debt has grown on par with other types of loans. The latest data from CUNA Mutual Group shows credit card debt rose 8% in the 12 months ending Oct. 30, while total loans grew 11.1%. The fastest growing major sector of the portfolio was car loans, which grew 14%.

However, while delinquency rates have been stable or falling in other sectors, they have risen slightly for credit cards, reaching 1.25% in September, up 20 basis points from a year earlier. The overall delinquency rate was 0.82% in September, up 2 basis points.

Of the 5,761 federally insured credit unions in September, there were 3,499 with credit card debt, according to NCUA data.

The Fed's G-19 report also showed U.S. non-revolving debt was essentially flat from October to November, while rising 5.2% from a year earlier to reach $2.8 trillion. That brought total consumer debt to $3.8 trillion in November, up 5.5% from a year earlier.

Nationally, more than 50% of non-revolving debt is from federal student loans, and 40% from motor vehicle loans. For credit unions, more than 90% is from car loans.

Credit unions held $365.9 billion in non-revolving debt in November, up 0.4% from October and 11.4% from a year earlier. Credit unions' share of non-revolving loans was 13% in November, essentially unchanged from October and up from 12.3% a year ago.

Banks, which have been retreating from car loans, held $707.4 billion in non-revolving consumer debt November, up 0.3% from October and 3.4% from a year earlier. Their share was 25.2% in November, little changed from October, but down from 25.6% a year ago.

The Fed's current data shows the nation last surpassed the $1 trillion mark for credit cards in December 2008, during the first year of the Great Recession. In its report last March, it showed the $1 trillion mark being reached in December 2016, but a downward revision a few months later brought it under that level.