In January 2017, the percentage of Florida's small businesses defaulting on existing loans has improved, despite default rates in 10 of the 18 major industries rising in the state, data published by PayNet explains.

The PayNet Small Business Default Index (SBDFI) for Florida stood at 2.42% following a 3 basis point improvement from December. Compared to the national SBDFI level of 1.84%, Florida’s SBDFI was 58 basis points greater. Financial health is weaker than a year ago in the state despite the recent downturn in defaults. Florida's SBDFI increased 60 basis points over the last year, while the national SBDFI increased 29.

The three industries with the worst default rate in Florida were Transportation and Warehousing (6.07%); Finance and Insurance (3.10%); and Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting (3.04%). Nationally, Transportation and Warehousing had a default rate of 4.23%, with a difference of +1.40% compared to the prior year variance of +1.35% in Florida.

At 82.6, the PayNet Small Business Lending Index (SBLI) for Florida dropped 0.6% from the previous month's state level and was 16.7% below this month's national SBLI level.

"Slower borrowing and investment by small businesses reflects caution regarding future demand," suggests the president of PayNet, William Phelan.

Related Files: Florida Small Business Credit Trends (PDF)