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The
Thomson Reuters/PayNet Small Business Lending Index fell to
136.1 in August from a July reading of 144.1. It was up 14
percent from the level a year earlier.
The index, which hit a record in June, has historically tracked
ahead of U.S. gross domestic product growth by two to five
months.
U.S. GDP expanded at a 3.9 percent annual pace last quarter,
although growth is expected to cool in the second half of the
year.
The decline in small-business borrowing is consistent with that
expectation and may do little to sway the case for a U.S.
interest-rate increase. Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen has
signaled she still plans to raise rates this year, but would
need to see "some further improvement in the labor market" and
more confidence on the inflation outlook before doing so.
The delinquency rate on loans more than 30 days past due was
1.47 percent in August, unchanged from the prior month, separate
data from PayNet showed.
PayNet collects real-time loan information such as originations
and delinquencies from more than 250 leading U.S. lenders.
(Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
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