- Hunter Biden Friend Worked for Prosecutor After Investigation Into President’s Son Began
By Zachary Stieber
A friend of President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden was employed by the U.S. attorney’s office investigating the Hunter after the probe ...
- Massive Backlog of US Passport Applications Sparks Flood of Complaints to Congress
By Bryan Jung
A major backlog of U.S. passport applications has spurred a flood of calls by angry American travelers to House and Senate offices on ...
- McCarthy: Biden Family Probe ‘Rising to the Level of Impeachment Inquiry’
By Caden Pearson
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has asserted that the growing body of evidence surrounding corruption allegations against President Joe Biden and his ...
- Hunter Biden Partner to Testify to Congress as White House Says President ‘Never in Business’ With His Son
By Zachary Stieber
Hunter Biden’s former business partner is scheduled to testify to Congress as lawmakers look to dig deeper into connections between President Joe ...
- DeSantis Involved in Car Accident on Way to Event in Tennessee: Campaign
By Jack Phillips
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was involved in a car crash on Tuesday while campaigning in Tennessee, according to his campaign.
The Republican 2024 ...
- Biden Administration Sued Over Alleged Harms of Biofuel Production
By Tom Ozimek
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) biofuel program is doing more harm than good by killing endangered species, according to a federal lawsuit against ...
- Texas Governor Says He Will Defy Federal Agency’s Request to Remove Floating Barriers
By Jack Phillips
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday said he would defy a Department of Justice (DOJ) request to remove inflatable, floating barriers in ...
- IRS Ends Unannounced Agent Visits to Taxpayers’ Homes
By Tom Ozimek
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced a major yet “common-sense” policy change that will put an end to most unannounced agent ...
- Trump’s Trade Chief Lays Out Plan to Beat China at Its Own Game
By Jan Jekielek and Terri Wu
Former U.S. trade representative Ambassador Robert Lighthizer views the decades of U.S. trade deficit with China as a “wealth transfer.” In ...
- RFK Jr. Maintains Highest Favorability Rating Among Presidential Candidates in New Poll
By Jeff Louderback
Days after a House hearing on censorship that saw Democrats attempt to prevent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from testifying, a new Harvard-Harris ...
- Auto Thefts Skyrocket in Cities Across the United States
By Bryan Jung
According to a new crime report, car robberies have skyrocketed in dozens of cities across the United States in the first half ...
- Texas’ Border Crackdown Bears Fruit: 422 Million Lethal Fentanyl Doses Seized, Over 31,000 Criminal Arrests
By Tom Ozimek
Texas’ efforts to stop the smuggling of drugs, weapons, and people into the United States under Operation Lone Star have borne fruit, ...
![Small businesses in the United States encountered growing challenges accessing credit in June, according to Equifax’s latest small-business lending index. Lending volumes fell by 3.3 percent month over month, although they remained up by more than 2 percent from the same period in 2024, according to the report released on Aug. 18. The index’s three-month moving average jumped to 1 percent, fueled by robust lending activity volumes in April that have since eroded. Story continues below advertisement Regionally, 23 states experienced year-over-year declines in 12-month rolling lending volumes, with California (minus 10 percent), Nevada (minus 9 percent), and Georgia (minus 6 percent) leading the decline. Across industries, nominal (noninflation-adjusted) lending decreased in six of the 17 sectors tracked. Accommodation and food services experienced the sharpest decline, while construction, finance and insurance, and retail lending remained stable. Credit conditions showed signs of stabilization in the wake of President Donald Trump’s tariff agenda, the report reads. Related Stories Treasury Department Releases New Guidance Restricting Wind, Solar Tax Credits The Epoch Times Buy Now, Pay Later Is Just Credit, Not a Crisis The Epoch Times The small-business delinquency index (31 to 90 days past due) edged up by nearly 2 percent, or three basis points, from May. The index was little changed from June 2024. Additionally, the default index fell by more than 3 percent, down by seven basis points month over month. Despite national improvements, 34 states reported year-over-year increases in default rates. Maine stood out with a 35 percent spike, the highest in the country. Delinquency rates rose or held steady in five industries, with wholesale trade posting the largest monthly increase of 2 percent. In the coming months, a boost to small-business lending is expected to unfold in the third and fourth quarters. Wall Street overwhelmingly anticipates that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates beginning in September. The Fed’s periodic Summary of Economic Projections—a survey of policymakers’ expectations for the economy and interest rates in the future—points to two rate cuts this year. The federal funds rate—a key policy rate that influences business, consumer, and government borrowing costs—has been unchanged in a target range of 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent since January. Story continues below advertisement However, although a rate cut is considered a boon for the credit industry, the report states that easing monetary policy could “exacerbate inflationary pressures.” Last week, the annual inflation rate for July came in at 2.7 percent for the second straight month, lower than the market’s estimate of 2.8 percent. However, key pipeline inflation indicators—the producer price index and import prices—topped economists’ expectations, signaling that the current administration’s trade agenda could be igniting renewed price pressures. The U.S. central bank will host its annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium from Aug. 21 to Aug. 23, with Fed Chairman Jerome Powell delivering the keynote address on Aug. 22. Lenders Signal Optimism Despite the slowdown in small-business lending, a recent industry survey suggests that lenders remain optimistic, citing improved business conditions. The Federal Reserve in Washington on July 21, 2025. (Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times) The Federal Reserve in Washington on July 21, 2025. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times According to the American Financial Services Association’s latest consumer credit conditions index for the second quarter, shared with The Epoch Times, the business environment was positive on balance. In the April–June period, the net increasing index—a measure spotlighting the difference between the percentage of lenders who said loan performance conditions got better and those who said they got worse—reached the highest level in the survey’s six-quarter history. In addition, 26 percent more respondents reported that funding costs improved in the second quarter than those who said they worsened. Meanwhile, 18 percent reported an improvement in the performance of their outstanding loans, compared with those who said it worsened. Despite broad-based improvements, more auto lenders reported that business conditions weakened in the second quarter than those who reported improvements. Auto lenders also anticipate weaker overall conditions over the next six months. Caution Ahead Demand for loans from commercial and industrial companies has weakened, according to the New York Fed’s Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on bank lending. Banks, according to the report, also found weaker demand for credit and other loans from consumers. Despite slowing credit demand, the findings indicated that credit supply through banking lending standards had not tightened significantly. Bipan Rai, managing director at BMO, said that ultimately, the latest figures reveal both the good and the bad. “Empirically, we know that a deterioration in the credit cycle is consistent with a general slowing of the real economy,” Rai said in an Aug. 11 note. “A silver lining in the [Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey] release is that credit supply ... has not tightened materially. Typically, a slowing in the credit cycle would be more concerning if falling demand came as a result of tighter lending standards.” Although the trade situation has stabilized since the April peak of uncertainty, businesses and consumers are seeking greater policy clarity, a recent survey highlighted. The American Bankers Association’s latest credit conditions index—a quarterly outlook for credit markets—declined for the second consecutive quarter. The headline reading came in at 32.1—anything lower indicates expected deterioration—and the index fell to 35.7 for businesses and 28.6 for consumers. Trade negotiations and passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act have offered some reassurance, but tariff-related uncertainty is still a headwind for credit conditions and the broader economy, according to Sayee Srinivasan, the association’s chief economist. “'Hard data’ suggest the economy remains on solid footing, but consumer and business sentiment indicate that policy uncertainty remains elevated and is causing some firms and households to adopt a cautious approach to hiring, spending and investment,” Srinivasan said in the report. The White House recently imposed higher reciprocal tariffs, ranging from 10 percent to 50 percent, on almost 70 U.S. trading partners. The president is expected to announce tariffs on imports of chips, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals soon. Story continues below advertisement Still, small-business optimism has improved and is above the National Federation of Independent Business’s long-term average. Bill Dunkelberg, the group’s chief economist, said that uncertainty persists but business owners are “reporting more positive expectations on business conditions and expansion opportunities.”](https://www.usnn.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Small-Business-Lending-Faces-Mixed-Signals-Amid-Economic-Shifts-jpg.webp "Small-Business Lending Faces Mixed Signals Amid Economic Shifts 4")
