:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-2255277403-eec4a0b69dc648248ef1937e77189903.jpg "Big Bank Stocks Are Tumbling After Trump Said This")
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/GettyImages-2255277403-eec4a0b69dc648248ef1937e77189903.jpg)
Key Takeaways
- Bank stocks fell Monday after President Donald Trump said over the weekend that credit card interest rates should be capped at 10% for at least a year.
- How a cap would be put in place and why for only a year remains unclear.
A number of banking and financial stocks slumped Monday morning after President Donald Trump over the weekend suggested capping credit card interest rates.
Trump posted on social media late Friday that Americans are being “ripped off” by interest rates of 20% to 30%, and said that effective Jan. 20 he would be calling for a one-year cap of 10%. How the cap would be implemented remains unclear.
Capital One Financial (COF) shares plunged over 5% Monday morning, while shares of Citigroup (C) and American Express (AXP) were each down 3%. JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America (BAC) and Wells Fargo (WFC) each fell between 1% and 2%. Shares of Synchrony Financial (SYF) declined close to 7%, with Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA) losing about 3%.
Why This Matters to You
Capping credit card interest rates may negatively impact firms that issue cards, but could lower the cost of borrowing for some consumers.
Executives from several of those institutions will get a chance to respond to that idea this week as big banks kick off earnings season, starting with JPMorgan on Tuesday.
Financial stocks may also be feeling the impact of concerns about the Trump administration’s latest pressure on the Federal Reserve, which sets the target federal funds rate that influences rates on a wide range of consumer loans. Late Sunday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank received subpoenas on Friday for a grand jury investigation into his testimony to Congress last year about the Fed’s renovation that has been the subject of attacks from Trump. Powell said the investigation is politically motivated and comes after the Fed did not lower rates as quickly as the president wanted.
