The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s (ELFA) Monthly Leasing and Finance Index (MLFI-25) showed overall new business volume for December was $11.8 billion, down 3 percent year-over-year from new business volume in December 2020.
The Index reports economic activity from 25 companies representing a cross section of the $900 billion equipment finance sector.
Volume was up 49 percent month-to-month from $7.9 billion in November in a typical end-of-year spike. Cumulative new business volume for 2021 was up almost 9 percent compared to 2020.
Receivables over 30 days were 2.0 percent, down from 2.2 percent the previous month and down from 2.2 percent in the same period in 2020. Charge-offs were 0.25 percent, up from 0.20 percent the previous month and down from 0.59 percent in the year-earlier period.
Credit approvals totaled 78.6 percent, up from 77.2 percent in November. Total headcount for equipment finance companies was down 7.9 percent year-over-year, a decrease due to significant downsizing at an MLFI reporting company.
Separately, the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s Monthly Confidence Index (MCI-EFI) in January is 63.9, unchanged from the December index.
“The association’s Q4 MLFI-25 equipment finance industry metrics show responding organizations reporting robust growth in new business activity as well as healthy portfolios, indicative of another solid year," said ELFA president and CEO Ralph Petta. "Cumulative 2021 originations grew about 9 percent when compared to 2020, the first year impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses in many industry sectors grew and expanded during the past 12 months, reflecting a favorable low interest rate environment, healthy corporate earnings and strong balance sheets. The outlook for the industry, and indeed overall economy, is somewhat cloudy, with unabated inflation, the Fed poised to increase interest rates, equities markets in a recent tailspin, and the Omicron variant remaining a concerning health factor in the U.S.”
Source: ELFA
