News
Recent news
Signs of recovery in some consumer credit markets, says FLA
Around £4.5 billion of consumer credit was granted by FLA members in April, 9% up on April in the previous year, according to the latest consumer finance figures published by the Finance & Leasing Association.
Almost all credit sectors showed an increase. Car finance, second charge mortgages and store instalment credit all grew by 26% compared with the previous April. Credit card finance and personal loans were up by 3%. The store card market contracted.
The upward trend in use of consumer credit since the beginning of the year follows relatively low growth in 2011.1
Geraldine Kilkelly, Head of Research and Chief Economist at the Finance & Leasing Association, commented:
“April’s figures are the fourth consecutive month of overall year-on-year growth in consumer credit provided by FLA members.
"The car finance market has now shown strong growth for several months, and more recently we have seen a pick-up in spending using store instalment credit. It may be that we are at last seeing tentative signs of a recovery in consumer confidence.”
Table 1: New consumer credit lending Apr 2012
|
| Apr 12 | % change on prev. year | 3 months to Apr 2012 | % change on prev. year | 12 months to Apr 2012 | % change on prev. year |
| Total FLA consumer finance (£m) | 4,450 | +9 | 13,809 | +8 | 53,369 | +3 |
| Store cards (£m) | 107 | -21 | 313 | -16 | 1,746 | -8 |
| Credit cards & personal loans (£m) | 2,686 | +3 | 7,992 | +3 | 32,992 | +1 |
| Store instalment credit (£m) | 224 | +26 | 667 | +16 | 2,483 | -5 |
| Second mortgages (£m) | 24 | +26 | 75 | +19 | 300 | +9 |
| Car finance (£m) | 1,309 | +26 | 4,464 | +21 | 14,645 | +11 |
- ends -
Note to editors:
1. Eurofinas’ Annual Survey on consumer credit across the European Union, which shows the UK market was flat between 2010 and 2011.
2. FLA members in the consumer finance sector include banks, credit card providers, store card providers, second-charge mortgage lenders, motor finance providers, personal loan and short-term credit lenders, and instalment credit providers.
3. In 2011 FLA members provided £72.9 billion of new finance to UK businesses and households. £52.1 billion of this was in the form of consumer credit, a third of all unsecured lending in the UK. And £19.9 billion of it supported the purchase of new and used cars, with 64% of private new car registrations financed by FLA members in 2011.
For further media information, please contact:
Russell Hamblin-Boone, FLA
T: 020 7420 9656 E: russell.hamblin-boone@fla.org.uk M: 07810 374110
Helen Saxon, FLA
T: 020 7420 9664 E: helen.saxon@fla.org.uk M: 07918 766 993