Friday, May 15, 2009

Up, Up, and Away! Credit Card Defaults Continue Rising

from Reuters:
U.S. credit card defaults rose in April to record highs, with Citigroup and Wells Fargo posting double digit loss rates, as the recession slashed more than 2 million jobs since the beginning of the year.

"U.S. card credit quality continues to struggle," John Williams, an analyst at Macquarie Research, said in a note to clients.

* Citigroup credit card charge-off rate at 10.21 percent

* Wells Fargo credit card charge-off rate at 10.03 percent

* Capital One changes customer bankruptcy accounting

* Banks' shares fall as much as 4 percent