American Express Co. said credit card defaults and late payments fell to 2009 lows last month as the lender continued to outperform competitors.
Managed net writeoffs dropped to 7.6% in November from 7.8% in October, the seventh straight monthly decline, the company said in a regulatory filing Tuesday. Loans at least 30 days overdue, a signal of future defaults, dipped to 3.9% from 4.1%.
Among the six U.S. issuers that released data this week, American Express was the only one to report declines in both writeoffs and delinquencies.
JPMorgan Chase & Co., the biggest credit card lender, said defaults climbed to a 2009 high of 8.81% from 8.02% in October. Delinquencies fell to 4.9% from 4.95%.
Defaults at Bank of America Corp., the No. 2 card lender, fell to 13% from 13.22%, while late payments increased to 7.69% from 7.59%, B of A said in a filing.
Citigroup Inc., the third-biggest issuer, said defaults climbed to 10.29% from 8.79%, the first increase since August. Loans at least 35 days overdue rose to 5.81% from 5.67%.
Capital One Financial Corp., the third-biggest issuer of Visa Inc. credit cards, posted increases in defaults and delinquencies. Writeoffs climbed to 9.6% from 9.04%, and payments at least 30 days overdue rose to 5.87% from 5.72%.
Writeoffs at Discover Financial Services increased to 8.98% from 8.54%, while overdue loans declined to 5.65% from 5.72%.
