Word: ge
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...flyer miles and cards that sport a picture of your dog, sterner messages are being delivered by many issuers. Faced with soaring delinquencies and smarter consumers in a glutted $700 billion marketplace, lenders are suddenly jacking up interest rates, slapping on new fees and pulling back benefits. In September, GE Capital, the finance arm of General Electric, warned holders of its GE Rewards MasterCard to expect a $25 annual penalty unless they racked up some interest-bearing debt. Two weeks later General Motors chopped in half the discounts that holders of its gold cards can get when purchasing...
...average card carries a 17.54% annual charge. The difference between the two is called the spread, for obvious reasons. In addition, card issuers typically charge merchants some 2% to 3% of the amount of each purchase that a customer makes. Throw in late fees, or in GE's case early fees, and margins might be enhanced further. "Banks earn more from credit cards than from any other business, even with all the delinquencies and losses," says Ruth Susswein, executive director of Bankcard Holders of America, a Virginia-based consumer group. "Even if you pay no annual fee, they still make...
...remain profitable, however, lenders want cardholders to pile up big debts. Consumers who pay off their balances each month are known in the industry's distorted parlance as "deadbeats" because they avoid steep interest charges. GE, which offers its Reward cardholders cash rebates worth as much as 2% of their purchases, put the deadbeats on notice last month with its $25 prompt-payment fee. "If there is not a tremendous consumer backlash," says Susswein, "we will see more companies punish cardholders for paying in full...
...GE 7 IBM 6 Ford 5 Intel 5 Merck 5 Columbia/HCA 4 Exxon 4 Hewlett-Packard 4 Johnson & Johnson 4 Pepsico 4 Wal-Mart 4 McDonald...
...week's end, at Time Warner's Manhattan headquarters, negotiations proceeded urgently. But the very announcement set off Wall Street speculation that other moguls, such as General Electric chairman Jack Welch and News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch, would enter the bidding for Turner. But Murdoch denied any interest; and GE indicated that while it would not try to break up this deal, it remained interested in Turner if the Time Warner acquisition failed. Says Harold Vogel, a media analyst at Cowen & Co.: "The only thing that's clear is that Turner Broadcasting is in play. Ted has turned from...