The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s (ELFA) Monthly Leasing and Finance Index (MLFI-25), which reports economic activity from 25 companies representing a cross section of the $1 trillion equipment finance sector, shows their overall new business volume for July was $9.4 billion, up 15% year-over-year from new business volume in July 2018. Volume was down 5% month-to-month from $9.9 billion in June. Year to date, cumulative new business volume was up 3% compared to 2018.
Receivables over 30 days were 2%, up from 1.7% the previous month and up from 1.9% percent the same period in 2018. Charge-offs were 0.37%, up from 0.33% the previous month, and up from 0.31 in the year-earlier period. Credit approvals totaled 75.7%, down from 77% in June. Total headcount for equipment finance companies was down 2.3% year-over-year.Separately, the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s Monthly Confidence Index (MCI-EFI) in August is 58.9, up from the July index of 57.9.
ELFA President and CEO Ralph Petta says, “Despite early warning signs of a much-discussed economic downturn, a representative sample of companies in the equipment leasing and finance industry report strong mid-summer origination activity. While credit quality in these portfolios is something to monitor carefully, business owners continue to invest in productive assets to grow their businesses and increase operational efficiency.”
For more information, visit: www.elfaonline.org