American Express credit cards with get a bit more expensive, if you carry a balance. AmEx lost one of its biggest retailer partnerships (No more AmEx cards at Costco U.S. stores next year) and suffered a defeat in an antitrust lawsuit this month. To make up for those losses, it is raising interest rates on a swath of credit cards for the first time in more than five years.
AmEx will increase annual rates to more than a million customers this month. Rates will go up by about 2.5 percentage points to at least 12.99 percent. The official reason for the rate increases is the finding that their rates were below those for rival cards held by borrowers “with similar credit profiles”.
AmEx shares are are down 13 percent this year, the most in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Most of our readers I hope won;t be affected by these changes, since balances should be paid in full every time.
