Equipment Finance Industry Confidence Improves Again in August

The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s August 2023 Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry reports that confidence in the equipment finance market is 50.4, an increase from the July index of 46.4.
    

When asked about the outlook for the future, MCI-EFI survey respondent Dave Fate, CEO, Stonebriar Commercial Finance, said, “In spite of significant turmoil in the U.S. banking sector, including multiple downgrades and warnings from the rating agencies, as well as unprecedented interest rate increases over the past year, the equipment leasing and finance industry continues to persevere. Secured equipment loans and leases continue to outperform every other asset class. I would expect our industry to continue to deploy much-needed capital—which serves as a catalyst for the U.S. economy—across a diverse set of industries across the credit spectrum.”
    
The overall MCI-EFI is 50.4, an increase from the July index of 46.4.
    
When asked to assess their business conditions over the next four months, 3.6% of the executives responding said they believe business conditions will improve, a decrease from 7.7% in July. A total of 89.3% believe business conditions will remain the same over the next four months, up from 65.4% the previous month, and 7.1% believe business conditions will worsen, a decrease from 26.9% in July.
    
When asked, 22.2% of the executives report they expect to hire more employees over the next four months, an increase from 15.4% in July. The majority, 70.4%, expect no change in headcount, down from 76.9% last month. And 7.4% expect to hire fewer employees, down slightly from 7.7% in July.
    
In August, 25% of respondents indicate they believe their company will increase spending on business development activities during the next six months, down from 26.9% the previous month, while 67.9% believe there will be “no change” in business development spending, up from 61.5% in July. Finally, 7.1% believe there will be a decrease in spending, down from 11.5% last month.