Consumer credit demand has risen in the September quarter, driven by a turnaround in personal loan applications, a private sector study says.
The quarterly Veda Consumer Credit Demand Index showed a 2.4 per cent year-on-year increase in credit demand in the three months to September.
Personal loan applications were a key driver, recording growth of 4.4 per cent year-on-year, which was the first September quarter uplift since 2007.
Veda's head of consumer risk, Angus Luffman, said the data suggests a move away from low credit demand which has prevailed in recent years.
"Historically, the trend is for consumer credit demand to fall in the September quarter, following the end of the financial year," he said.
The June quarter 2011 fall of 6.5 per cent for credit demand was now the smallest on record since tracking began in 2004, Mr Luffman said.
State by state, there had been a notable change in WA's credit demand.
"Western Australia had by far the strongest growth in year-on-year demand for new credit," he said.
Overall national credit card applications had flatlined in the September quarter, but had reported a slight 0.5 per cent rise in September year-on-year.
Growth in credit card applications was particularly strong in Western Australia, which had the biggest year-on-year growth, up 14.9 per cent in September.
South Australian demand for credit card applications grew by 6.5 per cent, while Queensland was the weakest performer, with a drop of 4.2 per cent, followed by New South Wales, down 2.7 per cent.
Overall personal loan enquiries increased by 4.4 per cent year-on-year, for the three months to September, the fourth quarterly rise.
Demand for personal loans rose highest in WA, by 10.3 per cent year-on-year in the September quarter.
