Asset finance new business increased by 3% in October compared to the same month last year to £2.51bn (€3.47bn), according to the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA).

IT equipment finance grew by 2% year-on-year in October to £170m, while finance for plant and machinery rose by 1% to £439m.

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Car finance remained the asset category with the largest new leasing volumes, witnessing growth of 6% year-on-year to £864m. Finance for commercial vehicles increased by 1% over the same period to £641m.

The aircraft, ships and rolling stock finance sector recorded an increase of 63% compared to October 2014, reaching £24m.

On the other hand, a negative year-on-year trend on new business was observed in business equipment finance, which fell by 12% to £159m.

Geraldine Kilkelly, head of research and chief economist at the FLA, said: "October saw continued growth across most of the main asset finance sectors, although the slowdown in emerging markets in recent months and falls in commodity prices have hit demand for construction and agricultural equipment finance. The FLA’s Q4 2015 Asset Finance Confidence Survey shows that the industry expects new business to grow by up to 10% in 2016."

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By channel and product

Direct finance, which accounted for more than half of all finance, grew by 4%. Broker introduced finance volumes increased by 5%, while sales finance volumes shrank by 5%.

Lease/hire purchase, by far the most popular product in asset finance, grew by 7% to £1,387m. Finance leasing fell by 7% to be worth £312m, and operating leasing fell by 5% to £547m.