All had been quiet on the credit card front for some time, until this month's rate cut by MBNA. The global credit card giant is one of three providers in the Irish market offering low introductory APRs for balance transfers.

Low introductory rates are deployed to attract new business, but can be very useful to some card users in certain circumstances. More importantly, MBNA cut its standard APR from an expensive 18.9 per cent to a more competitive 16.9 per cent. This leaves the larger providers in chilly isolation at the pricier end of the market.

AIB and Bank of Ireland are almost on a par, charging customers 18.9 and 18.8 per cent respectively on standard credit card purchases. Despite their high rates, the two banks share about 70 per cent of the credit card market.

National Irish Bank and Ulster Bank are slightly cheaper at 18.2 and 17.9 per cent. Tusa's MBNA card is close behind on 17.5 per cent.

MBNA joins Tesco Personal Finance, which entered the Irish market aggressively last May, offering the lowest APR for credit card purchases at 16.9 per cent. The Tesco Visa card is the first product to be introduced by Tesco Personal Finance in the Republic and the take-up in the first year has far exceeded company forecasts, according to a spokesman.

Tesco's balance transfer rate is fixed at 5.9 per cent for the first six months. MBNA brought the balance transfer rate on its standard cards down to 3.9 per cent at the beginning of the month. AIB's equivalent introductory rate is 6.9 per cent. Obviously there is more to consider than the APR on purchases or balance transfers when selecting the best credit card for you. More than 50 per cent of Irish cardholders clear their balance every month and therefore enjoy an interest-free account. Those who travel abroad frequently should be aware of how much it costs to withdraw money or make purchases inside and outside the euro zone. Big spenders who have built up a hefty balance on one credit card may benefit from transferring their account to another provider with a low introductory rate.

But this will really only work in your favour if you bring your spending back to within manageable limits and make an effort to pay off some or all of the balance during the six-month breathing period. The Irish Bankers' Federation figures for last year show that credit cards are becoming increasingly popular.

The Review of Activities for 2000 shows that 1.6 million credit cards were used for 69 million transactions to a total value of £4 billion (€5.1 billion). That's an average of 43 transactions per credit card, with an average spend per transaction of £58.