US equipment finance industry confidence holds steady in August

Confidence among US equipment finance executives remained steady in August, following three consecutive months of gains, according to the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s August 2025 Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry (MCI-EFI).

The index, which measures industry sentiment in the US$1.3 trillion equipment finance sector, eased slightly to 60.2 in August, down from 61.6 in July. While the dip suggests a slight cooling in optimism, executives maintain a broadly positive outlook despite persistent economic uncertainties.

“The results of 2025 to date have made me optimistic about the near-term future of the equipment leasing and finance industry,” said David Normandin, CLFP, President and CEO of Wintrust Specialty Finance.”

“2025 has brought strong origination volume and slightly improved portfolio performance. A little net interest margin improvement would be the icing on the cake for a year that we were concerned about in January.”

Key August 2025 findings are:

Business conditions: About 26.9% of executives expect business conditions to improve over the next four months, down from 37.5% in July. A larger majority (69.2%) expect conditions to remain stable.
Capital expenditure demand: Expectations for demand growth softened, with 26.9% predicting increased demand for leases and loans to fund capex, down from 37.5% last month.
Access to capital: 11.5% of respondents expect greater access to capital in the coming months, down from 16.7% in July, though none foresee reduced access.
Employment trends: Hiring plans surged, with 42.3% of executives anticipating adding staff — more than double July’s 20.8%.
US economy assessment: None of the respondents rated the economy as “excellent,” compared with 8.3% in July. All now classify the economy as “fair.”
Economic outlook: Just 23.1% expect the economy to improve over the next six months, a sharp drop from 41.7% in July, while 65.4% expect conditions to hold steady.
Business development spending: 30.8% plan to increase business development investments, up from 25% last month, signalling cautious but ongoing growth strategies.