OTTAWA, May 20 (Reuters) - The Canadian government is expected to lay out new regulations for the credit card industry on Thursday, following on the heels of a U.S. initiative to limit credit card interest rates and fees.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has scheduled a news conference for 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) Thursday. The topic has not been specified, but a well-connected finance source said it was about credit cards and financial literacy.
Flaherty has promised to unveil regulations this month to improve transparency in the credit card industry, but he was not expected to go quite as far as a sweeping bill passed by the U.S. Congress on Wednesday.
He wants to ensure standard grace periods and to make certain consumers know what they will be charged, even going to the extent of making fine print big enough to be more legible, but not impose interest rate limits.
The U.S. bill, expected to be signed into law by President Barack Obama within days, prohibits arbitrary rate increases, bans credit card issuers from raising rates in the first year, and takes numerous other steps designed to prevent abuse.
(Reporting by Randall Palmer; editing by Rob Wilson) Keywords: CANADA FLAHERTY/ (randall.palmer@thomsonreuters.com; +1-613-235-6745; Reuters Messaging: randall.palmer.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has scheduled a news conference for 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) Thursday. The topic has not been specified, but a well-connected finance source said it was about credit cards and financial literacy.
Flaherty has promised to unveil regulations this month to improve transparency in the credit card industry, but he was not expected to go quite as far as a sweeping bill passed by the U.S. Congress on Wednesday.
He wants to ensure standard grace periods and to make certain consumers know what they will be charged, even going to the extent of making fine print big enough to be more legible, but not impose interest rate limits.
The U.S. bill, expected to be signed into law by President Barack Obama within days, prohibits arbitrary rate increases, bans credit card issuers from raising rates in the first year, and takes numerous other steps designed to prevent abuse.
(Reporting by Randall Palmer; editing by Rob Wilson) Keywords: CANADA FLAHERTY/ (randall.palmer@thomsonreuters.com; +1-613-235-6745; Reuters Messaging: randall.palmer.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.