WASHINGTON—A new report shows card issuers are focused on attracting consumers with existing debt, while slowly steering away from people intent on incurring new debt in a recovering economy.
The conclusion is supported by the fact that 0% balance transfer periods have stabilized, while 0% purchase terms are becoming shorter, explained CardHub and WalletHub in the companies’ 2015 Credit Card and Banking Landscape Report.
“Not only do credit card offers regularly fluctuate in value, corresponding to changes in the economic climate or issuer strategy – but credit card market trends are also extremely revealing in terms of the health of the country’s economy and that of its consumers,” the organizations stated in a joint release.
Other findings:
- The value of initial rewards bonuses, both cash- and points/miles-based, increased significantly relative to last year: 7.45% and 10.95%, respectively.
- Credit card companies continue to exploit the weakness of cash-hungry customers, increasing cash advance fees more than 40% since the end of 2010. The average cash advance fee is now the greater of 3.97% or $13.15.
- Rates increased roughly 1% relative to Q4 2014, with students receiving the biggest bump (3.30%).
- The only rate decreases were seen in the sub-prime segment of the market, with secured credit cards and unsecured cards for fair credit falling 1.10% and 1.01%, respectively.
The report can be found here.