Many businesses rely on loans from the Small Business Administration. SBA loans surged during the pandemic in 2020 and particularly last year. But now, lenders say they’ve been tailing off thanks to higher interest rates and the prospects of a recession. “I’d say it dropped off around 50% over the summer, when we started really feeling it,” said Jennifer Davis, who’s in charge of Southern California lending at TMC Financing.
Also in this special report, East West Bank’s chief executive, Dominic Ng, is the new chair of the business advisory committee of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference. His group will recommend policy changes to Pacific Rim countries to help boost international trade.
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