HOUSTON - Has the economy become too good to be true? Two credit card giants may be thinking that way. Capital One and Discover question how much longer the economic recovery will last, so they're tightening lending standards. The renewed caution comes in part because consumers have been taking on record levels of debt.
Credit card analyst Ted Rossman with creditcards.com says, "It's really the ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure theory combined with good times can't last forever."
Rossman doesn't think other credit companies will follow suit. "Credit delinquencies are near historical lower, they are much lower, about 2/3 lower than the great recessions."
Rossman says the move may show the economy cannot keep sustaining its growth momentum, but that doesn't mean a recession is around the corner.