Auto-finance performance helped the composite rate of the S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices register its best reading thus far this year.

Based on data through September, S&P Dow Jones Indices and Experian reported on Tuesday that the auto finance default rate decreased 8 basis points to 0.89 percent.

To give that auto figure a little more perspective, the latest reading is 1.29 percent lower than it was 10 years ago when the economy in the fall of 2008 began to descend into the financial maelstrom that created the Great Recession.

Fast forward to now, analysts determined the September composite rate —which represents a comprehensive measure of changes in consumer credit defaults — came in 5 basis points lower than the August reading to register in at 0.82 percent.

The bank card default rate dropped 38 basis points to 3.14 percent.

The first mortgage default rate was down 2 basis points to 0.63 percent.

And the positive developments continued when S&P and Experian looked at the biggest cities. All five major markets they track each month recorded decreases in composite default rates in September.

Dallas generated the largest decrease, falling 11 basis points to 0.73 percent.

The default rate for Los Angeles dropped by 9 basis points to 0.56 percent, while the rate for Chicago fell 6 basis points to 0.85 percent.

The default rate for New York dipped 4 basis points to 0.79 percent as the default rate for Miami ticked 1 basis point lower to come in at 1.56 percent.

David Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the index committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, shared his assessment of all of the positive developments, which again included all loan types and all major markets posting a decrease in default rates in September.

Blitzer also pointed out that September marked the fifth consecutive month of decreasing bank card default rates. The latest rate of 3.14 percent is the lowest level observed since December 2016. The monthly drop of 38 basis points was the biggest monthly decline seen since December 2015.

“Consumer credit default rates for mortgages and auto loans are stable, while default rates for bank cards declined modestly in the last few months,” Blitzer said.

“With the low unemployment rate and some improvement on wage gains, consumers are not facing rising economic pressure,” he continued. The favorable income situation combined with auto and home sales that have drifted down since late 2017 led to the current good consumer credit default pattern.

“Soft retail sales growth contributed to improvements in the bank card default picture,” Blitzer went on to say.

Blitzer closed his analysis by touching on the impacts of Hurricanes Florence and Michael, which both created vast destruction in the Southeast from the Florida Panhandle, Georgia and up to the Carolinas.

“The 2018 Atlantic hurricane season is turning out to be quite active,” Blitzer said. “We have already seen 14 named storms with over a month left before the season nominally ends on November 30th.

“The short-term impact of the hurricanes is an anticipated reduction in retail sales in impacted areas,” he continued. “However, this is likely to be followed by rising retail sales and spending combined with weaker consumer financial conditions for consumers in affected regions.

“Depending on the extent and severity of the storm damage, consumer credit default rates in some regions could rise during the rest of 2018,” Blitzer added.

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.