Chase’s APR increase raises national average

If you're looking for a new credit card, you may want to wait a week or two. During the week of July 26, credit card interest rates on new offers grew, largely because of an interest-rate increase made by Chase.

The average annual percentage rate (APR) for new cards is now 14.44 percent, up slightly from 14.42 percent last week. However, in the last six months, rates have been raised nearly one percent. At that point, the average was 13.71 percent.

Chase adjusted the lower end of APR rates for its Slate credit card, from 11.24 percent last week to 13.24 percent during the week of July 26. The ceiling on rates for the card remained at 22.24 percent, unchanged from the previous rate. The two percent increase in this one card impacted the national average by two-tenths of a percent.

Rates increased only in two categories. Average balance transfer rates increased to 12.97 percent from the previous week's average of 12.88 percent, and are up even more from the average of 12.4 percent, reported six months ago. Low-interest card rates increased to 12.31 percent from 12.18 percent the previous week. Until this week, the low-interest rate had remained relatively stable.

Earlier this year, Chase reduced the amount of credit cards it was offering because of the CARD Act. Partly because it disallowed credit issuers like Chase from raising interest rates on high-risk card holders.

Raising APRs and not carrying riskier card holders is due to fears of potential losses. But the American Bankers Association reported that since the beginning of 2010, unpaid credit card bills and delinquencies have fallen to "3.88 percent of all accounts, which is below the 15-year average (3.93 percent). This is the first time since the second quarter of 2002 that bank card delinquencies have fallen below 4 percent."

-Chris Meehan