4 March 2005
Consumers in the UK are favouring secured over unsecured loans as a means to steadying their financial situations, a new report reveals.
The news further supports the case of a nationwide trend of improving financial awareness and savviness on the part of individuals in the British Isles.
Figures from the February HSBC Index, measuring personal loan, mortgage, and equity withdrawal enquiries, reveals an overall increase in activity in the three months to February of 1.3 per cent on the previous quarter.
Specifically, enquiries about unsecured loans were 4.7 per cent down on a year earlier in complete contrast to secured loans with mortgage enquiries up by 12.5 per cent and equity withdrawal up 6.7 per cent.
Commenting on the figures, economist John Butler said: "This index was first in suggesting that borrowing stabilised at the end of last year; now it is showing the first tentative signs of a re-acceleration."
The index is based on HSBC internal data which track customer contacts by product and is widely considered to be a good leading indicator for consumer borrowing and spending.
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