Top > Business > 2005 > November > 2005-11-03

Rates for Credit Cards Rise Slightly

Credit card rates rose only slightly this week, but Tuesday?s announced increase in federal lending rates signaled more hikes to come, according to the Index Credit Cards weekly Credit Card Monitor. Index Credit Cards uses ?top-level" to describe Platinum or similarly designated credit cards that generally offer the lowest interest rates to eligible cardholders.

?Just as the previous Fed increase had finished making its impact on credit card rates, another quarter-point increase comes along and promises to raise rates again,? said Justin McHenry, Research Director for Index Credit Cards.?Contrary to speculation last week after the nomination of Ben Bernanke as Federal Reserve chairman, it now appears we?ll see more hikes in the next few months.?

Top-level business credit cards remained at an average 9.91% APR for the third straight week. Both the Advanta Platinum BusinessCard and the Chase Platinum Business Card offer a 7.99% APR. Consumer reward cards rose to an average 10.89% APR, up from 10.85% last week. MBNA offers a number of cards in this category with a published rate of 7.9%, e.g., the Elite Rewards MasterCard.