STATISTICS - COMMENTARY ON THE LEASING MARKET FIGURES FOR 2007
In 2007 the value of the new portfolio of the chattel and real property leasing market amounted to PLN 32,7 bln, an increase of 50% compared with 2006.The value of new agreements on the chattel leasing market amounted to PLN 29.6 bln (a 50% increase).
The value of new agreements on the real property leasing market equalled PLN 3.1 bln (a 50% increase).
The value of the total active portfolio of leasing agreements in 2007 has been estimated at PLN 48.6 bln, including 37.5 bln in the chattel sector and 11.1 bln in the real estate sector.
We estimate that the share of leasing in the financing of investments in the chattel market has increased from 27.2% in 2006 to 33.8% in 2007 and on the market as a whole, including transactions in the real estate market, from 13.8% to 17.3%. The results are that good partly because the Polish economy is growing rapidly and leasing in the country is becoming more and more popular as a viable instrument for financing investments.
The Polish leasing market comes as one of the most dynamic in Europe. According to our estimations, the great results in 2007 have increased the share of the Polish market in the European market from 1.9% in 2006 to 2.4 in 2007.
Below is a list of investment purchases financed through leasing (the figures in brackets show how the values changed compared to 2006):
* road transport vehicles to the value of approximately PLN 19,5 bln (a 59% increase),
* including passenger cars to the value of approximately PLN 7.3 bln (a 68% increase),
* industrial machines and equipment to the value of approximately PLN 8.9 bln (a 37% increase),
* computer and office equipment to the value of approximately PLN 476.5 mln (a 30% increase),
* means of rail, aerial and sea transport to the value of approximately PLN 583.4 mln (a 0.3% increase),
* other fixed assets to the value of approximately PLN 222.5 mln (a 60% increase).
The year 2007 brought the most dynamic growth to the road transport vehicles sector which had a 66% share in the chattel leasing market (an increase from 62%). This growth was mostly fostered by the leasing of passenger cars, truck-tractors and articulated trailers. The average value of passenger cars leased in 2007 was PLN 75,000 and the average agreement duration was 39 months. The sector of specialist road transport vehicles such as truck-tractors and all sorts of trailers and semi-trailers developed as rapidly with average agreement duration ranging from 48 to 49 months. Most leased vehicles (86%) were brand new.
The second biggest chattel leasing sector, i.e. industrial machines and equipment, retained its significant 30% share in the chattel market. The sector's best seller was construction equipment with its share in the market growing in 2007 from 30 to 33%. A study conducted in late 2007 by Poland's Central Statistical Office (GUS) indicated that leasing is the second most popular (after companies' own funds) source of financing for investments in the construction sector with 46% of businesses leasing construction equipment. The share of other categories of machines and equipment ranged from 1 to 7% of the total value of the market. The average value of machines and equipment leased in 2007 was PLN 139.000 and the average contract duration 47 months. As in the road transport sector, the leased machines and equipment were mostly new (91%).
The share of the aerial, sea and rail transport sector remained practically unchanged. It should be noted, however, that the value of leased equipment decreased (from PLN 2.3 bln to 1.2 bln).
The real property leasing market was similarly successful. The year 2007 has been its best ever.
Most of value of the real property market came from retail and service establishments (46%) and office buildings (27%). Industrial buildings ranked third with a market share of 17%; hotels and leisure establishments constituted 2%. The average value of leased property was as follows:
* offices: 17 mln,
* retail and service establishments: PLN 16 mln,
* industrial buildings: 12 mln,
* hotels and leisure establishments: 9 mln.
As for contract durations, the longest average contract periods were observed for retail and service establishments (149 months) and office buildings (140 months). On average, hotels and leisure establishments were leased for 127 months and industrial buildings for 103 months.
Polish Leasing Barometer
For the third time, Leaseurope, an organisation uniting 47 national unions of leasing sector associations, has published the Polish Leasing Barometer, an overview on the level of confidence of leasing companies in the country. The study measures the satisfaction of Polish leasing professionals in relation to the state of the general economy (the macroeconomic environment), the leasing sector and their own business. Poland comes as an undeniable leader of this confidence index. Towards the end of 2007 the value of the index in Poland equalled 80 points with the European Leasing Barometer (an index average for all European countries) amounting to 32 points and the average result for Central and Eastern Europe amounting to 53 points. Polish leasing professionals evaluate the macroeconomic conditions more positively (71 points) than all their Central and Eastern European (41 points) and European colleagues (5 points). Poles are also more optimistic about the functioning of the Polish leasing industry (92 points) with the Central and Eastern European average equalling 61 points and the general European result 32 points as well as about the situation in their own companies (Poland: 76 points, Central and Eastern Europe: 58, Europe: 45 points). In the latter respect, Polish leasing professionals are most confident about the level of turnover and the value of concluded contracts (83 and 88 points, respectively). Conceivably, this is the case because recently Polish leasing businesses invested a lot in modernisation and dynamic growth adjusted to the increasing demand on leasing services. High spending on investments results, in turn, in postponed profits, which affects the Polish leasing sector's expectations concerning the achievable level of future profits (75 points) and the availability of skilled employees (58 points).
Warsaw, 31 January 2007
Prepared by:
Andrzej Sugajski Director of the Polish Leasing Association
(Związek Przedsiębiorstw Leasingowych)