Inflation is at a four-decade high, and a recession could be near. Credit-card issuers aren’t worried: They are aggressively courting new customers and trying to increase credit-card balances.
Marketing expenses are up at big issuers, including American Express Capital One Financial and Discover Financial Services. New credit-card account openings are surging. Solicitations promoting zero-percent interest rates on purchases and balance transfers, which fell after the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates in March, are rising again.