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February 05, 2009

CreditCards.com: Weekly Credit Card Rate Report

Austin, Texas -- The national average annual percentage rate on new credit card offers remained unchanged this week, according to the CreditCards.com Weekly Credit Card Rate Report.

The national average credit card APR is comprised of every card found at CreditCards.com. Introductory (teaser) rates are not included in the calculation.

Rates for card categories tracked by CreditCards.com are listed below:

Credit Card Rate Averages
	Avg. APR	Last Week	6 Months ago
National Average	11.58%	11.58%	11.29%
Balance Transfer	10.14%	10.14%	9.65%
Low Interest	11.05%	11.05%	10.80%
Instant Approval	11.29%	11.29%	11.26%
Reward	11.32%	11.32%	11.89%
Airline	11.60%	11.60%	12.87%
Bad Credit	12.15%	12.15%	11.09%
Cash Back	12.71%	12.71%	11.37%
Student	14.21%	14.21%	14.71%
Business	16.74%	16.74%	10.46%
Source: CreditCards.com Updated: 02-05-09

The national average remained unchanged despite Bank of America raising the upper range of APRs for some cards. The issuer is hardly alone in making changes, however. According to the Fed's latest survey of senior loan officers, nearly 60 percent of banks tightened lending standards on credit card and other consumer loans in the fourth quarter. Additionally, just over half of respondents said they were less willing to offer credit cards and other consumer loans to borrowers with poor credit, while slightly less than half said they raised minimum credit score requirements.

Further insight into how those lending standards may have impacted credit card balances will be provided tomorrow via the Fed's December G.19 report on consumer credit.

The CreditCards.com credit card rate survey is conducted weekly using offer data from the leading U.S. card issuers. Rate movement may be influenced by changes in the composition of offers tracked.

Introductory offer periods and regular interest rates vary with applicants’ credit quality and issuer risk-based pricing policies.

About CreditCards.com
CreditCards.com is a leading online credit card marketplace connecting consumers with multiple credit card issuers, including nine of the 10 largest in the United States, based on credit card transaction volume. CreditCards.com, http://www.creditcards.com, enables consumers to search for, compare and apply for more than 150 credit cards and offers credit card issuers an online channel to acquire qualified applicants.  

Contact:
CreditCards.com, Austin
Ben Woolsey, 512-996-8663, ext. 106
Director of Marketing

NOTE TO EDITORS: The information contained in this release is available for print or broadcast with attribution to CreditCards.com.

Source: CreditCards.com