Bloomberg reported that U.S. bank credit is growing at the fastest pace in three years, giving the Federal Reserve confidence in the economic expansion’s staying power.

Bloomberg said financial institutions increased commercial and industrial loans by an average annual pace of almost 10% in the third quarter, the highest since the comparable quarter in 2008, compared with a 1.7% decline in the past four years, according to Fed data. The latest numbers show loan growth of 15%, seasonally adjusted, in October and 6.1% in November.

Bloomberg quotes Robert McTeer, former Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas president, as saying, “The resumption in lending means a projected fourth-quarter pickup in gross domestic product may be sustained next year even amid Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis.”

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