U.S. Small Business Lending Continues to Grow

U.S. small businesses lending grew in February from the year before for the 12th straight month, according to data released on Monday by PayNet Inc. According to a Reuters report, "Investment by businesses in the closely watched sector, which is considered a key driver of employment growth, fell, however, compared to the previous month for a second consecutive month, suggesting wavering confidence in the strength of the recovery and an unwillingness to invest in expansion, PayNet's president said." The Thomson Reuters/PayNet Small Business Lending Index, a measure of lending volume to U.S. small businesses, rose 15% in February from a year earlier, PayNet said. "These numbers are a little disheartening and disappointing." William Phelan, PayNet's president said. He continued: "There's not a lot of positive data here to support the view that small businesses are in a sustainable rebound. It looks like they're kind of running in place at best. What we're definitely not seeing is the kind of explosive growth coming out of a recession that we might hope for." Small businesses have been making slow progress in hiring and capital investment since the recession hit. This has been especially detrimental because small business is responsible for a considerable portion of the U.S. economy.