Moody's Investors Service said Tuesday that credit card charge-offs rose slightly in February, adding that the stabilization was another sign of impending improvement in credit card performance, according to a Dow Jones report.
William Black, a senior vice president at the rating agency, said that as the effects of the spike in early stage delinquencies in the fall begins to wane, the ultimate peak in charge-off rates may be reached this month or next.
If unemployment remains flat in the second half and delinquencies continue to improve, Moody's said, the charge-off rate could peak at slightly below the long-held forecast of 12%. That compares with February's 11.08%, up from 11.07% in January. The all-time high was 11.5% in August.
The percentage of accounts with a monthly payment more than 30 days late fell in February to 5.91%, the lowest level since August.
The amount of a cardholder's balance paid fell slightly from January, which was expected because of the shortened month.
