May sees 11% increase in US business equipment borrowings, according to ELFA

U.S. companies borrowed 11% more in May than they did a year ago to finance equipment investments, according to the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA). In May, companies signed up for new loans, leases, and lines of credit worth $10.2 billion, which was a 7% decrease from the previous month. ELFA President and CEO Leigh Lytle suggested that the drop in volume from April may indicate that some businesses are waiting to acquire equipment until interest rates decrease.

The Washington-based ELFA reports economic activity for the equipment finance sector, which is valued at over $1 trillion. In May, credit approvals for U.S. companies remained steady at 75%, unchanged from the previous month. The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation, ELFA’s non-profit affiliate, reported that its confidence index for June was 50.2, a slight decrease from 50.7 in May. A reading above 50 on the index indicates a positive business outlook.

ELFA’s leasing and finance index is based on a survey of 25 members, which includes Bank of America and financing units of companies like Caterpillar, Dell Technologies, Siemens AG, Canon Inc, and Volvo AB. Abhinav Parmar in Bengaluru reported this story, with editing by Tasim Zahid.