Small business confidence in US near 45-year high in September
Small businesses in the States continued to be in buoyant spirits last month, the results of a widely-followed survey revealed.
The National Federation of Independent Businesses's small business optimism index slipped from a reading of 108.8 for August to 107.9 in July - its third-highest reading in 45 years.
According to the NFIB, actual capital spending plans rose significantly in September, alongside "solid" hiring conditions, increased inventories and record levels of compensation.
"This is the longest streak of small business optimism in history, evidence that tax cuts and regulatory rollbacks are paying off for the economy as a whole," said NFIB President and CEO Juanita D. Duggan. "Our members say that business is booming and prospects continue to look bright."
Nvertheless, subindices linked to companies' plans to increase inventories, spend on capital in the future and for corporate earnings fell by seven, three and two points, respectively, to a net -7%, -3% and -2%.
Commenting on the figures, Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said: "We'd be surprised to see further declines in the near-term, given the rapid pace of economic growth and the need to renew the ageing capital stock. The labor market numbers in this report are startling - the employee compensation index rose to a record high - but they aren't new; they were released last week, ahead of the official payroll report, as usual.
"The message is straightforward; labor demand is very strong, but people are becoming very difficult to find, and labor cost pressures are intensifying."