Editor, the News-Herald:

Most economic &uot;experts&uot; seem to be blaming high oil and gas prices for possible consumer reluctance to spend. If the truth be known, credit interest rates, which can be extremely high, are probably the greatest burden on consumers.

Unfortunately, Greenspan and the Federal Reserve are raising rates, which hurts the Bush effort to spur the economy. Credit lenders are the big winners with this policy.

Edward C. Sharp Jr.

Clyde, North Carolina