OAN’s James Meyers
8:05 AM -Thursday, March 21, 2024
According to a recent study, Americans have paid almost 50% more in credit card expenses since President Joe Biden took office.
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In 2023, U.S. credit card holders gave out $157 billion in interest and fees on their credit cards, which is an eye-popping increase of $51 billion compared to 2020, according to a report by Financial Times.
According to Moody’s Analytics, credit card delinquencies are at the highest in 13 years, with consumers racking up a record $1.13 trillion at the end of the final quarter of 2023.
With the staggering credit card rates, the banks have been able to reap the benefits as the Federal Reserve raised interest rates to a 23-year high. On Wednesday, the central bankers kept the rate unchanged.
The latest numbers come as recent polls have revealed that more than half the country believed they were better under Donald Trump from an economic standpoint.
An FT and Michigan Ross poll conducted in March found that 28% of Americans said credit card debt was one of their top financial stresses.
The same poll also revealed that an eye-opening 80% of respondents claimed inflation was their highest concern on the totem pole.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration put in place a rule earlier this month to put a cap on all credit card late fees, in a move that they claim will save Americans up to $10 billion a year.
Additionally, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) new regulations will put a cap at $8 for almost all credit card late fees or make it a mandatory requirement from banks to explain why they charged more than $8.
The move will bring the average credit card late fee down from $32.
However, the CFPB said last month that credit card companies’ interest on loans was at an all-time high, which cost customers almost $25 billion extra each year.
According to the CFPB, the annual percentage rate (APR) is now at 14.3%, which is the highest number in several years.
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