The number of Hawaii residents and businesses filing for bankruptcy fell in February for the eighth consecutive month, according to a report issued Monday by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

The 149 cases filed in February was 11 percent fewer than the 168 cases filed the same month a year earlier. Bankruptcy filings have been on a downward trend since early 2011, tracking improvements in Hawaii’s job market and the broader economy. Bankruptcies had peaked in mid-2010 as the local economy struggled to recover from the 2008-2009 recession.

Bankruptcies fell in all counties except Maui County, where they rose to 28 in February from 27 the same month a year earlier. In Hono­­­­lulu County bankruptcy filings fell to 92 in February from 106 a year earlier.

Filings dropped to 22 cases from 27 in Hawaii County and to seven cases from eight in Kauai County.

The biggest drop was in Chapter 7 liquidation cases, which fell to 107 in February from 124 a year earlier, a drop of 14 percent.

The number of Chapter 13 cases, which allow debtors to keep their assets if they set up a plan to pay creditors over time, fell to 42 from 43.

The drop in bankruptcy filings in recent months has been accompanied by declining credit card debt. The most recent data from credit-scoring website Credit Karma showed that average credit card debt in Hawaii dropped to $5,338 in December, a 19 percent decline from the same month in 2012.

Although Hawaii ranked third highest nationally in average credit card debt outstanding, residents also had the nation’s highest average credit score at 662. A high credit score indicates an ability to repay debt.

Strengthening job growth and a declining unemployment rate have contributed to Hawaii’s improving credit picture. The state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations reported last month that the number of nonagricultural jobs grew by 9,500 in December from the same month a year earlier. The jobless rate, meanwhile, was 4.5 percent in December, down from 5.1 percent from a year earlier.