The June financial shopping numbers released by Compete were a mixed bag. With interest in credit cards, home equity, and purchase loans down double digits compared to a year ago. However, deposit activity moved in the opposite direction.

More specifics:

• Although credit cards application volume was relatively flat (down 1% for the year and down 4% for the month), the number of shoppers was down 39% compared to a year ago. Although, the data only shows application volume, there has likely been a sharp drop off in approvals, as underwriting standards stiffen and credit-worthy applicants stay on the sidelines. 
• In June there was a slight drop in checking shoppers (down 4%) and applications (down 5%) compared to May. However, year-over-year both were up with a 32% increase in shoppers and a 6% increase in applicants.
• However, savings shoppers increased 51% from last year and 7% from May with applications up 43% compared to last year and 24% over last month.
• High-yield savings showed similar gains compared to a year ago, with 31% more shoppers and 30% more applications. 
• Home equity and purchase mortgage activity were both off compared to the previous month and a year ago. The only good news was an increase in refi activity with 10% more shoppers than May and 27% more than a year ago. But application volumes were down 21% from May and down 34% compared to last year.

About the Financial Services Scorecard
A little over a year ago, we introduced the Financial Services Monthly Performance scorecard produced by Compete. It summarizes the overall performance of 23 large U.S. financial institutions and lead-generation sites. Refer here for the detailed methodology as well as companies tracked.

Notes:
1. Year-over-year comparisons were added to the chart beginning in March 2008. Because of ongoing methodology tweaks, the percentages in this table may be slightly different than if you went back to the data from a year ago and calculated the change. 

2. Leads/applicants = Leads or applications depending on whether the site tracked is a lead-generation site or an actual lender.