September 20, 2005
The total value Taiwan's credit card transactions has climbed 19.1% on the year to
NTD 822.3 billion in the first seven months of the year, according to the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics. In this seven month period, cash advances through credit cards rose 16.6% on the year to
NTD 127.2 billion.
With 24.58 million active credit cards in circulation over the previous six months, there are 133 cards for every 100 people in Taiwan over the age of fifteen, up from 125 in the same period in 2004, according to the DGBAS.
In Taiwan, a country that never had a bank checking culture, credit cards are essential equipment for the savvy consumer, with
NTD 19 out of every
NTD 100 put on plastic as of the end of 2004, according to Visa International. By comparison, Americans, the global leaders for credit card spending, put
USD 26 out of every hundred spent on a credit card, while consumers in Taiwan's close neighbor Japan charge just 4 yen for every hundred.
Yet, the once fashionable gold card has apparently lost its luster for the Taiwanese consumer, as the number of gold cards issued in Taiwan continues its decline of recent years. Any Taiwanese shopper worth her plastic now insists on charging it to a shiny platinum card.
For platinum cards and unlimited cards, Taiwan is currently Visa's biggest customer in the Asia Pacific region for both the number of cards issued and the total value charged and is third globally behind the US and Britain.
(United Daily News, Central News Agency)
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