The market share of US Internet searches for “credit cards” nearly doubled (+98%) in the past four weeks and were up 20% year on year last week. Searches for “credit cards” experience a fairly predictable pattern with spikes in August and in November with the November spike being the greater of the two. The likely reason for this is anticipation for holiday spending.

Given the current sensitivities in the financial markets, particularly to lower income borrowers, the increase in credit card searches might not come as a big surprise. Further emphasizing the financial woes, among the top non-branded searches for credit cards are “credit cards for bad credit” and “bad credit credit cards”. HSBC today cited losses from credit cards as well as mortgage backed securities and is not alone in those woes.
The most searched for brands for credit cards in the past four weeks were Chase, Capital One, HSBC, Walmart and Visa. Capital One is the brand to watch – with the share of US Internet searches for “capital one credit card” almost doubling (+96%) year on year last week.
Search data indicates that consumers may be planning to fund more of their holiday shopping on credit than in the past. If the banks tighten the reins, retailers may feel the pinch.