June’s auto loan metrics bucked the trends seen in other credit markets to register a new historical low, according to the latest S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices.

Analysts from S&P Dow Jones Indices and Experian noticed the auto loan default rate in June dropped 1 basis point on a sequential basis and 11 basis points year-over-year to settle at 0.85 percent.

The new historic low point for auto loans is 190 basis points below the high point of the data S&P and Experian has that dates back 10 years. That high mark arrived in February 2009 when the Great Recession caused a default surge to 2.75 percent.

Meanwhile, analysts spotted the June composite rate — a comprehensive measure of changes in consumer credit defaults — rose 5 basis points in June from the previous month to land at 0.93 percent. But that latest composite rate still is 9 basis points lower than a year ago.

S&P and Experian determined the default rates for first mortgages and second mortgages increased, too

The first mortgage default rate came in at 0.80 percent, 6 basis points higher than its historical low in May. The second mortgage default rate reported an increase of 13 basis points to 0.55 percent.

The bank card default rate dropped another 10 basis points, reporting in at 2.88 percent in June.

“Among the different categories, bank cards saw the largest drop while auto loans were off by a tick,” said David Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the index committee.

“First and second mortgages saw a small increase in defaults,” Blitzer continued. “None of these data are immediate cause for concern. They reflect continued optimism and spending by consumers."

Analysts also mentioned three of the five major cities also continued their downward trend, reporting negative month-over-month default rates in June.

Los Angeles led the way, reporting at 0.88 percent, down 7 basis points from the previous month.

New York and Dallas continued their downward inclination, reporting historical lows of 0.91 percent and 0.68 percent, decreases of 4 basis points and 2 basis points, respectively.

Miami had a significant increase of 25 basis points, reporting 1.42 percent in June.

Chicago halted a three-month decline to report a default rate of 1.04 percent, up 4 basis points from the previous month.

“This report, and the economy's overall condition, both look a lot like last month,” Blitzer said. “The economy continues to expand at a modest pace, helped by the 5.3 percent unemployment rate, a continued low rate of initial unemployment claims and recent improvements in housing starts.

“All of these factors should continue to support the current low rate of consumer credit defaults,” Blitzer continued.

Despite that general upbeat assessment, Blitzer cautioned there are some factors that raise concern for both consumers' financial conditions and the economy.

“While oil prices are low, they remain volatile as traders and investors weigh the impact of Greece, the agreement with Iran, and the latest bounce and bump in China's equity market,” he said.

“For consumer spending, oil matters the most of these possible developments,” Blitzer continued. “Oil price swings are feeding into consumer prices as seen in the uptick in the June CPI numbers. However, we would need higher inflation for a long time period before it would worry consumers or cause a pause in spending or credit usage.”

Blitzer closed his latest analysis by touching on the trends associated with the five major metro areas.

“Looking across the five cities reported on each month, Miami shows a jump in consumer defaults, Chicago saw a slight uptick, while the others saw default rates flat to down,” he said. “The favorable default trends remain in place.

“The increase in Chicago's numbers is too small to be a concern. Miami's figure does not appear to be an issue, either; in the next month or two, data are likely to show Miami in good shape compared with the other cities,” Blitzer continued.

Jointly developed by S&P Indices and Experian, analysts reiterated 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.