Finance & Leasing Association6 April 2018
New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) for deals of up to £20 million fell in February by 1%, compared with the same month last year.
The plant and machinery finance and IT equipment finance sectors reported new business growth in February of 5% and 13% respectively, compared with the same month in 2017. By contrast, new business for commercial vehicles and business equipment fell by 7% and 20% respectively over the same period.
Commenting on the figures, Geraldine Kilkelly, Head of Research and Chief Economist at the FLA, said:
“Many asset sectors reported further growth in February despite it being a quieter month overall.
“The asset finance market continued to support key economic sectors with new finance for construction and agricultural equipment up by 13% and 9% respectively, compared with February 2017. The manufacturing sector also benefitted as new finance for production and process equipment was 47% higher over the same period.”
| Feb 2018 |
% change on prev. year |
3 months to Feb 2018 |
% change on prev. year |
12 months to Feb 2018 |
% change on prev. year |
|
| Total FLA asset finance (£m) |
2,006 |
-6 |
6,975 |
+1 |
31,718 |
+4 |
| Total excluding high value (£m) |
1,952 |
-1 |
6,413 |
-1 |
29,980 |
+5 |
| Data Extracts: By asset: |
||||||
| Plant and machinery finance (£m) |
491 |
+5 |
1,512 |
+4 |
6,629 |
+10 |
| Commercial vehicle finance (£m) |
479 |
-7 |
1,532 |
-9 |
7,425 |
0 |
| IT equipment finance (£m) |
169 |
+13 |
594 |
+19 |
2,380 |
+5 |
| Business equipment finance (£m) |
170 |
-20 |
587 |
-2 |
2,554 |
+4 |
| Car finance (£m) |
552 |
+5 |
1,767 |
-1 |
9,517 |
+5 |
| Aircraft, ships and rolling stock finance (£m) |
9 |
-89 |
72 |
-58 |
472 |
-8 |
| By channel: |
||||||
| Direct finance (£m) |
948 |
-3 |
3,131 |
-3 |
14,968 |
+3 |
| Broker-introduced finance (£m) |
450 |
+10 |
1,369 |
+7 |
5,733 |
+11 |
| Sales finance (£m) |
554 |
-4 |
1,913 |
-1 |
9,279 |
+6 |
| By product: |
||||||
| Finance leasing (£m) |
262 |
+17 |
909 |
+5 |
3,848 |
+7 |
| Operating leasing (£m) |
390 |
-10 |
1,325 |
-9 |
6,699 |
0 |
| Lease/Hire purchase (£m) |
1,146 |
-3 |
3,514 |
-1 |
16,876 |
+6 |
| Other finance (£m) |
165 |
-34 |
788 |
-7 |
3,228 |
-8 |
Note to editors:
- In 2017, FLA members provided £128 billion of new finance to UK businesses and households. £32 billion of finance was provided to businesses and the public sector. FLA members financed more than a third of UK investment in machinery, equipment and purchased software in the UK in 2017.
- For media enquiries, please contact the FLA press office on 020 7420 9656.
