NEW YORK -

Perhaps when auto-finance executives thought defaults couldn’t get any lower, the industry responded with, “Hold my beer!”

According to the newest data compiled by S&P Dow Jones Indices and Experian, auto defaults now are at the lowest reading ever recorded. The auto segment of the S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices came in with a rate of just 0.34% in May, softening 9 basis points from the previous month.

That previous low mark arrived almost a year ago when analysts pegged the rate for last June at 0.40%.

The auto default rate now has been below 1% for 17 months in a row. Back in December 2019, it stood at 1.02%.

S&P and Experian said the May composite rate — which represents a comprehensive measure of changes in consumer credit — dropped 6 basis points month-over-month to settle at 0.44%.

Elsewhere in the May data released on Tuesday, analysts indicated the bank card default rate fell 22 basis points to 3.01%, while the first mortgage default rate decreased 5 basis points to 0.33%.

The latest update also included trends in connection with the five largest U.S. cities. Analysts noticed notable declines for each of those metro areas, including:

— New York: down 37 basis points to 0.46%
— Chicago: down 9 basis points to 0.41%
— Dallas: down 9 basis points to 0.42%
— Los Angeles: down 10 basis points to 0.42%
— Miami: down 23 points to 0.81%

Jointly developed by S&P Indices and Experian, analysts noted the S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices are published monthly with the intent to accurately track the default experience of consumer balances in four key loan categories: auto, bankcard, first mortgage lien and second mortgage lien.

The indices are calculated based on data extracted from Experian’s consumer credit database. This database is populated with individual consumer loan and payment data submitted by lenders to Experian every month.

Experian’s base of data contributors includes leading banks and mortgage companies and covers approximately $11 trillion in outstanding loans sourced from 11,500 lenders.