Recent Release | 30 Nov 2023

Experian / Oxford Economics Main Street Report

Macro and Investor Services

Oxford Economics

Consumer Credit tightening

Q3 report findings

Outstanding performance in the third quarter is a great headline focused on the resiliency of the American consumer. Business confidence and financials benefited from a consumer confidence boost as market conditions appeared to improve as inflation receded. Consumer spending remained elevated, supporting small business cashflow health, but a rising percentage of that consumer spend originated from leveraged consumer credit products. Creditors have been monitoring the rise in unsecured debt utilization and putting into action exposure limiting underwriting criteria. This action meant that some consumers and small businesses were less likely to gain access to new credit at their primary lender but were able to seek out funding from an alternate lender at a more risk appropriate price point.

About the report

Experian/Oxford Economics’ Main Street Report brings deep insight into the overall financial well-being of the small-business landscape, as well as provides commentary on what specific trends mean for credit grantors and the small-business community. Critical factors in the Main Street Report include a combination of business credit data (credit balances, delinquency rates, utilization rates, etc.) and macroeconomic information (employment rates, income, retail sales, industrial production, etc.).

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