New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business grew to £9,863m in July 2024 by 4% compared with the same month in 2023.
In the seven months to July 2024, new business in this market held steady compared with the same period in 2023.
The credit card and personal loans sectors together reported new business up in July by 5% compared with the same month last year, while the retail store and online credit sector reported a fall in new business of 1% over the same period.
Geraldine Kilkelly, director of research and chief economist at the FLA, said: “The consumer finance market made a positive start to the third quarter of 2024 with modest growth in the value of new business in July.
“Consumers’ optimism about the outlook for their personal finances and committing to big-ticket purchases has greatly improved in recent months off the back of better news on inflation and interest rates.
“We expect total UK new consumer credit by value to grow by around 6% in 2024 as a whole.
“As always, customers who are worried about meeting payments should speak to their lender as soon as possible to find a solution.”
