PayNet, the premier provider of credit ratings on small businesses, announces that in January 2018 the percentage of Louisiana's small businesses defaulting on existing loans has declined, with default rates in 12 of the 18 major industries falling in the state.

In spite of a five basis point dip from December, Louisiana's PayNet Small Business Default Index (SBDFI) at 2.60% was one of the worst nationally and was 78 basis points greater than the national SBDFI level of 1.82%. Declining default rates over the past year signals improved financial health in the state. The national SBDFI fell two basis points year-over-year, while Louisiana's SBDFI dipped 39 basis points.

The three industries with the highest default rates in Louisiana were Transportation and Warehousing (5.44%); Construction (4.64%); and Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction (4.10%). Nationally, Transportation and Warehousing had a default rate of 3.91%, with a difference of -0.40% compared to the prior year, while Louisiana had a variance of -0.35%.

Coming in at 118.1, the PayNet Small Business Lending Index (SBLI) for Louisiana improved 0.7% from the previous month's state level and was 16.2% higher than this month's national SBLI level (101.7).

"More definitive trends are needed to gauge the future economic performance for Louisiana," explains the president of PayNet, William Phelan.