Household HSBC Watch

Barclays warned yesterday of falling profits in its credit card division due to customers missing repayments and increasing bad debts. The news, from the country’s biggest credit card lender, confirmed fears of a severe downturn in consumer confidence and left banking shares among the biggest losers of the day.

“This comes at a time when HSBC is counting on profits from Household International’s credit card operations to make the once predatory and disgraced Household International profitable as a subsidiary of HSBC” said consumer watchdog organization Household - HSBC Watch. “New trends in consumer complaints indicate something is fishy on the Wharf” they group said.