Signs of a pick-up in consumer spending, reported by the Bank of England in its inflation report last week, may be of little benefit to credit card companies.

Consumer debt remains a problem and there is evidence that where consumers are spending, they prefer to pay immediately rather than on their credit cards. Figures from the Association of Payment Clearing Services show that in June, debit cards for the first time took more than 60 per cent of the value of transactions, well ahead of credit cards.