My Credit Card Drives Me Nuts

Tue, Oct 07, 2008

Credit Card Interest Rates Edge Down in Past Week

The average annual interest rates charged on popular types of credit cards edged down in the past week, according to Bankrate.com.

For low interest cards, which have rates below the national average but are often offered only to customers with strong credit histories, the average APR declined slightly to 11.56 percent, from 11.63 percent last week.

For cash back cards, which feature cash back or other reward incentives and generally require a good to excellent credit rating for approval, the average APR slipped to 13.84 percent from 13.96 percent.

Bucking the trend, balance transfer cards, which allow consumers to consolidate outstanding debt from one or more cards and sometimes include a low introductory rate, saw their the average annual percentage rate remain flat with last week at 13.49 percent.

Overall, the average APR charged for all variable rate cards tracked by Bankrate was 11.31 percent, a slight decline from 11.32 percent last week.

Bankrate surveys the 10 largest banks and thrifts in the 10 largest markets in the U.S. to determine its averages.

Source

http://www.businessweek.com/