Personal Finance

Waban, Mass. -- Research results released Monday by Temkin revealed that, based on a study of 10,000 U.S consumers, American Express and USAA earned the top spots in the credit card sector.

According to the 2013 Temkin Experience Ratings, HSBC was the lowest rated credit card issuer for the third consecutive year.

"USAA and American Express set the pace for customer experience in credit cards while HSBC is a real black sheep in the industry," said Bruce Temkin, managing partner, Temkin Group.

AUSTIN, Texas — Online coupons site RetailMeNot.com has launched a new online magazine, The Real Deal by RetailMeNot. As the editorial voice of RetailMeNot.com, the lifestyle daily delivers shopping, fashion, beauty, parenting, personal finance and seasonal advice to help consumers get more for their money, so they can get more for their lives.

New York -- A report released Monday by Ipsos found that affluent optimism in the U.S. economy rose significantly in February.

ARLINGTON, Va. — Consumer confidence in the overall economy and sentiment toward technology both fell again in February, according to the latest figures released by the Consumer Electronics Association.

The CEA Index of Consumer Expectations (ICE), which measures consumer expectations about the broader economy, fell 2.7 points in February to 165.3. Consumer confidence in the overall economy declined for the second consecutive month.

Washington, D.C. -- Nearly three-quarters (73.3%) of consumers say their spending plans are taking a hit due to the recent payroll tax changes, according to NRF’s 2013 Tax Returns Survey conducted by BIGinsight.
 
When asked how the new federal tax laws have affected spending, saving or budgeting of their households, nearly six in 10 (58.2%) of those polled say their plans have been either somewhat or greatly impacted. Specifically, nearly half (45.7%) say they will spend less overall, and 35.6% will watch for sales more often.
 

McLean, Va. -- Capital One Financial Corp. said Tuesday that it will sell off its Best Buy portfolio of private-label and co-branded credit card accounts. Current loan balances total about $7 billion.

The pair is severing their ties earlier than expected – the break-even sale of the portfolio to Citi is expected to finalize in third quarter 2013.

New York -- Bad feelings about the global economy persist, with more than half of consumers around the world say the world is in an economic recession, according to a new study by Nielsen.

According to the Nielsen Global Survey of Consumer Confidence and Spending Intentions, 71% of North Americans said they were in a recession in the fourth-quarter of 2012, but this represented a drop in 15 percentage points from the fourth quarter 2011, representing the largest drop in negative sentiments about the economy of any area.

CHICAGO — Though a 2% increase in payroll tax may seem insignificant for middle- and upper-income families, it can cause a major change in shopping behavior for lower-income families, a new study has found.