credit cards

Credit card debt may have jumped during the holiday shopping season, but a new report indicates good old cash is still our first choice when we pay for smaller, everyday items.

Retailers reported robust numbers on Black Friday last year, which surprised some analysts because the economy is still struggling and unemployment is high. But new data from the Federal Reserve shows where much of that money came from: credit cards.

If you have a new credit card, chances are good you’re paying more for the privilege now than ever before — interest rates have reached an almost unparallelled high.