Confidence among leasing and finance companies increased in February, according to the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation. Its Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry (MCI-EFI) was 64.4, an increase from the January Index of 59.6.
The index reports a qualitative assessment of both the prevailing business conditions and expectations for the future as reported by key executives from the equipment finance sector.
Some 46 percent of executives responding said they believe business conditions will improve over the next four months, up from 33 percent in January. On the other end, about 8 percent believe business conditions will worsen, a slight increase from 7 percent in January.
About 42 percent of the survey respondents said they believe demand for leases and loans to fund capital expenditures (capex) will increase over the next four months, up from 33 percent in January. Some 4 percent said they believe demand will decline, down from 7 percent in January.
None of the respondents evaluate the current U.S. economy as “excellent,” unchanged from the previous month. About 77 percent of the leadership evaluate the current U.S. economy as “fair,” down from 78 percent in January. About 23 percent evaluate it as “poor,” up from 22 percent last month.
“Although we believe the 2021 PPP program will suppress capital needs for a short period of time among SMBs, we’re expecting a positive rebound from a year’s worth of pent-up pandemic demand,” said Brad Peterson, CEO, Channel Partners Capital, in a prepared statement. “Our post-pandemic portfolio looks fantastic and we expect the strong performance to continue through 2022. We believe this is the time to invest in SMB marketplace opportunities.”
Source: ELFF
