Exclusive: business loan jumps in March: ELFA

By Lynn Adler

New York | Monday, April 25, 2011 2 pm

New York (Reuters)-the key index of business activity of the United States jumped in March as companies walked the circulation for new equipment, a lender told Reuters on Monday.

Equipment leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) said business in the u.s. comes from 6.2 billion loans, leasing, credit lines, 44 percent in March from a year ago, 51 percent and from February and 4.1 billion.

"We are in the 11th month straight to improve new business volumes year-over-year", the President of ELFA, CEO William Sutton said in an interview. "We are still optimistic about the progress of the recovery."

The group represents about half of the vlooim who to finance capital investment in the United States each year.

Strong demand for business equipment industries, said Sutton. The technology, "we see businesses replacing aging equipment, increasing the capacity of the IT world," and continue this trend, he said.

Some indicators of credit quality of the month, but large lgr mzmanit a year ago.

3.5 percent of ELFA said he had asked 30 day or later, up from 3.1 percent in February. But at the same rate fell 17 percent from October.

Charge-offs, which reflect loans unlikely to be repaid, the percentage rose slightly, 1.3 percent in March from February,% 1, but improved from-1.5 percent a year earlier.

Vlooim-65 percent approved of capital expenses and credit applications in March, up from 76 percent in February.

Total amount of equipment finance companies remains flat straight month v, but was down 2 percent from a year ago. The construction sector was weak.

ELFA, reports the financial sector economic activity of 521 billion dollars, provides his monthly report to Reuters the day before the official release.

ELFA members include Bank of America (BAC.N), from the CIT Group (shd N), Caterpillar Inc. (CAT.N) Caterpillar financial services Corp., Deir & Co (de.N) John Deere financial, Siemens Ag Siemens (SIEGn. DE) financial services with Verizon Communications Inc. and of (VZ.N) with Verizon Capital Corp. affiliate, among others.

(Editing by Dave Zimmerman)

View the original article here