CIVIL debt continues to rise, with the number of civil summonses for debt recorded for the three months up to January 1999 increasing by 7,2% compared with the corresponding period last year, Statistics South Africa said on Thursday. After seasonal adjustment this rises to an increase of 10,6% on the preceding three months. The total number of civil judgments for debt recorded in that period increased by 6,8% compared with the corresponding period last year but, after seasonal adjustment, is 5,9% lower than the previous three months. During January 1999, 56586 civil judgments for debt were issued amounting to R563,2 million.