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New data from Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) indicates continued momentum in business asset investment, with 68 per cent of companies taking up asset finance arrangements in the past year.
Within this, CBA saw a 20 per cent jump in vehicle and equipment financing in December 2025, compared with December 2024.
CBA general manager of asset finance, Renee Theodor, said a surge in December financing was typical end-of-year activity, but in 2025, it was happening “at a much higher level”.
“The end of the year is often an attractive time to purchase, with suppliers offering incentives to move existing stock ahead of new model launches. This allows businesses to secure better pricing and begin the new year with upgraded equipment ready for work,” Theodor said.
Agriculture and manufacturing drive investment upswing
Strongest growth was recorded across equipment categories central to Australia’s industrial and regional sectors (December 2024 versus December 2025 CBA asset financing):
- Agricultural machinery – up 116 per cent
- Manufacturing & industrial equipment – up 76 per cent
- Retail and office fitouts – up 64 per cent
- Technology assets – up 48 per cent
- Trucks – up 18 per cent.
Theodor said more businesses were planning investments in hybrid and electric vehicles, earthmoving equipment, and office technology this year as they focused on productivity and efficiency.
Industry feedback also showed companies are taking a more strategic approach to fleet upgrades, with research indicating almost a third were targeting productivity gains through improved vehicle efficiency.
Productivity gains
CBA’s asset finance data also shows that asset investments are contributing to reported improvements in business productivity.
Data shows that 87.6 per cent of businesses reported productivity gains above 10 per cent following recent asset upgrades.
Bigger firms are capturing the largest uplift, with more than half reporting productivity improvements of 20–50 per cent, driven by newer, more efficient equipment.
Outlook for 2026
Investment and demand for asset finance were expected to continue rising in 2026, Theodor said.
“The biggest thing businesses want is speed. On our side, that means fast approvals and certainty when they’re ready to invest,” she said.
Theodor said CBA is continuing to invest in automation to cut turnaround times and deliver faster approvals and funding for customers.
“Smaller assets can still deliver big productivity gains,” Theodor said. “We want to make it as easy as possible for businesses to invest.”
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