[originaltext] There are big cultural differences between British shoppers a

There are big cultural differences between British shoppers and shoppers in continental Europe when it comes to credit cards.
    Shopping by credit card in Britain is rising: it increased by ￡ 400 million last month. But shoppers in France and other continental European countries still prefer cheques, cash or store cards to credit cards.
    Two-thirds of all credit cards spending in the European Union takes place on British cards.
    But this picture is starting to change in continental European countries. In 2002, Visa in- creased the number of its credit cards in the EU by 10.6 percent. The number of transactions rose by 12 percent. In France, many shoppers are learning that store cards charge higher interest rates than credit cards.
    There are still many difficulties for credit card companies that want to expand in continental Europe. Many continental European consumers don’t like to spend on credit cards: they prefer to negotiate a loan with their bank branch. So their local bank remains the main source of credit.
    But many US-and UK-owned credit card companies see the possibility of growth in continental Europe and have ambitious plans to expand.