Credit Card Spending Declines

21st February 2007

The amount of money that UK consumers are spending on their credit cards fell again in January, according to the latest figures from the British Bankers Association. This has led analyst to suggest that despite the appeal of the January sales, consumers are beginning to manage their finances in a more responsible manner.

The figures from the British Bankers Association show that total credit card borrowing declined by a total of £500 million in January and this followed a decline of some £330 million in December 2006.

David Dooks, the British Bankers Association's director of statistics said that, "We can see that the January sales did not encourage borrowing on credit cards. As in the second half of last year, card borrowing is contracting and, with weaker retail sales being reported, this reflects the consumers current attitude to spending and their commitments."

Some analyst have suggested that with recent interest rates having increased mortgage repayments, people have decided to reduce their credit card debts rather than increasing their spending on their credit card.