US small business optimism steady amid mixed signals in June: NFIB
The Uncertainty Index dropped by five points from May to 89. Nineteen per cent of small business owners cited taxes as their most pressing issue, marking an increase from May, and once again ranked as the top concern. The last time taxes reached 19 per cent was in July 2021, NFIB said in a press release.
'Small business optimism remained steady in June while uncertainty fell,' said Bill Dunkelberg , chief economist at NFIB . 'Taxes remain the top issue on Main Street, but many others are still concerned about labour quality and high labour costs.'
The US NFIB Small Business Optimism Index in June declined slightly to 98.6, primarily due to concerns about inventory levels, with a net 5 per cent reporting stocks as 'too low'. Expectations for better business conditions and higher sales volumes fell. Labour quality remains a concern for 16 per cent of owners, while inflation pressures eased to 11 per cent.
The June index showed a slight dip, with a net negative 5 per cent of business owners viewing their current inventory stocks as 'too low'. This marks a six-point decrease from May, signalling a net increase in inventories.
In June, 7 per cent of owners reported inventories as 'too low', down from 8 per cent in May, while 12 per cent reported inventories as 'too high', up from 7 per cent in May. This shift in inventory concerns was the primary factor behind the decline in the Optimism Index.
Business owners' expectations for better conditions dropped by three points, standing at a net 22 per cent, still above the 51-year average of 3 per cent. Similarly, expectations for higher real sales volumes fell by three points to a net 7 per cent.
In terms of capital investment, 21 per cent of owners' plan capital outlays over the next six months, a slight decrease from May.
Labour quality remains a key challenge for small businesses, with 16 per cent of owners citing it as their most important issue, unchanged from May. This marks a decline from April 2020, when labour quality complaints were lower.
The percentage of small business owners reporting labour as their top concern aligns with other data suggesting a more tempered labour market across the economy.
Inflation pressures appear to be easing, with 11 per cent of owners now citing higher input costs as their most important problem, down three points from May and the lowest level since September 2021.
The overall health of small businesses has significantly deteriorated. The percentage of business owners rating their company as in 'excellent' or 'good' health fell, with 8 per cent reporting excellent health (down six points) and 49 per cent reporting good health (down six points).
Conversely, 35 per cent rated their business health as fair (up seven points), while 7 per cent reported poor health (up three points).
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
19 hours ago
- Time of India
Trump tariffs: Small businesses in America need to pay an extra $202 billion a year
Bloomberg Live Events Bloomberg The economic policies passed in the first six months of President Donald Trump 's term may yet bring a Golden Age, but so far they haven't for small farms and businesses. According to an estimate by the right-leaning US Chamber of Commerce, Trump's levies mean that small businesses will have to pay an extra $202 billion a year on tariffs, which works out to about $856,000 per company on optimism soared on Trump's victory and plunged when he announced tariffs; the right-leaning NFIB Small Business Optimism Index has recovered somewhat since 'Liberation Day' but has yet to reach the heights of Trump's first term in office, and response rates to the survey have fallen, suggesting some business owners may be too busy struggling to remain solvent to complete surveys. The Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer index has declined for two months in a with large companies, smaller enterprises are struggling to wait out the vicissitudes of Trump's on-again, off-again tariffs. Democratic Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear told me recently that he is already seeing the impact across his state on small businesses, small farms and consumers alike. 'We're all paying a hidden tax in the form of widespread tariffs,' he said. 'Look, it's not just me saying this. If Andy Beshear, [former GOP Senate Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell and [GOP Senator] Rand Paul are all saying this is a bad idea, it's because it's a really bad idea.'Companies with fewer than 500 employees contribute 43.5% of the nation's gross domestic product. Small family farms still constitute 86% of all farms, according to federal data. But they lack the leverage and resources of larger enterprises and can find themselves at the mercy of forces over which they have little influence.'They're what economists call 'price-takers,'' Louis Johnston, an economist and professor at St. John's University in Minnesota told me. 'It means you accept the world as it is. You don't have enough power to affect prices and you don't have much wiggle room on wages. You're stuck.' Big businesses, he said, are price-makers. 'They can eat some costs , pass some to consumers, reduce stockholder dividends or shave a bit off wages,' he said. 'If you're small, all you can do is take the hit.'Investors agree, and publicly traded small companies have seen their stocks become less attractive since Trump unveiled his tariff agenda on 'Liberation Day' in in Congress seem unwilling to place the slightest restraint on a president convinced of his infallibility on companies are finding themselves in the uncomfortable position of absorbing the increased costs of tariffs, according to Scott Lincicome, director of general economics and trade studies at the Cato Institute. That's not sustainable, especially for smaller businesses, and Lincicome is projecting higher consumer prices this fall. Even before its most recent estimate of tariff costs, the Chamber of Commerce had rung the alarm in a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that warned 'small businesses could suffer irreparable harm' from tariffs. 'The Chamber is hearing from small-business owners every day who are seeing their ability to survive endangered by the recent increase in tariff rates.'The GOP tax bill does grant some benefits to small businesses, such as a permanent extension on deductions. Doug Loon, president of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, told me that those benefits may become a lifeline. 'It would have put a lot of small businesses out of business if those provisions had not happened,' he a longtime Republican, remembers when his party saw free enterprise as an article of faith. He also recalls that the free-trade era carried its own challenges, particularly for smaller businesses that 'didn't always get a fair shake.' Loon believes that targeted tariffs, skillfully applied, 'can be incredibly beneficial.' Trump's broad-based approach 'has created great uncertainty among our businesses. And that is where disparities can occur.'Trump portrays tariffs as free money paid by countries that have 'ripped off' America . His new levies have already begun sending billions to the US Treasury. But the reality is that tariffs are a hidden tax mostly borne by US companies and consumers. According to Goldman Sachs data, US consumers have paid 22% of the cost of Trump's tariffs. Only 14% of the cost has been borne by foreign other 64%? Eaten by American businesses Trump has reset the table on trade. Unfortunately, in his hands, tariffs are a blunt instrument used to punish enemies, reward friends and bully other nations. He substitutes threats and intimidation for negotiations and diplomacy. The deals, such as they are, remain vague, with details often disputed by trading was just seven months ago that the International Monetary Fund declared the US economy would continue to lead the world in 2025. IMF officials said the US was growing at a faster clip than its economic competitors, with more productive workers and a more welcoming business environment, leaving Trump and the GOP well positioned to capitalize politically on those economic several key economic indicators are pointing in the wrong direction — a scenario largely of Trump's own making. Businesses are struggling to adapt to his ever-shifting landscape of tariffs. Farmers are getting clobbered by higher inputs and they've lost markets thanks to an administration that ended foreign food aid and cut nutrition the president brags about the revenue tariffs are bringing, as if everyone didn't already know who is really footing the bill.
Economic Times
a day ago
- Economic Times
Trump tariffs: Small businesses in America need to pay an extra $202 billion a year
Synopsis President Trump's tariff policies are negatively impacting small businesses and farms, forcing them to absorb increased costs. While the GOP tax bill offers some relief, uncertainty persists due to the administration's trade approach. iStock According to an estimate by the right-leaning US Chamber of Commerce, Trump's levies mean that small businesses will have to pay an extra $202 billion a year on tariffs. The economic policies passed in the first six months of President Donald Trump's term may yet bring a Golden Age, but so far they haven't for small farms and businesses. According to an estimate by the right-leaning US Chamber of Commerce, Trump's levies mean that small businesses will have to pay an extra $202 billion a year on tariffs, which works out to about $856,000 per company on optimism soared on Trump's victory and plunged when he announced tariffs; the right-leaning NFIB Small Business Optimism Index has recovered somewhat since 'Liberation Day' but has yet to reach the heights of Trump's first term in office, and response rates to the survey have fallen, suggesting some business owners may be too busy struggling to remain solvent to complete surveys. The Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer index has declined for two months in a row. Compared with large companies, smaller enterprises are struggling to wait out the vicissitudes of Trump's on-again, off-again tariffs. Democratic Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear told me recently that he is already seeing the impact across his state on small businesses, small farms and consumers alike. 'We're all paying a hidden tax in the form of widespread tariffs,' he said. 'Look, it's not just me saying this. If Andy Beshear, [former GOP Senate Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell and [GOP Senator] Rand Paul are all saying this is a bad idea, it's because it's a really bad idea.'Companies with fewer than 500 employees contribute 43.5% of the nation's gross domestic product. Small family farms still constitute 86% of all farms, according to federal data. But they lack the leverage and resources of larger enterprises and can find themselves at the mercy of forces over which they have little influence. 'They're what economists call 'price-takers,'' Louis Johnston, an economist and professor at St. John's University in Minnesota told me. 'It means you accept the world as it is. You don't have enough power to affect prices and you don't have much wiggle room on wages. You're stuck.' Big businesses, he said, are price-makers. 'They can eat some costs, pass some to consumers, reduce stockholder dividends or shave a bit off wages,' he said. 'If you're small, all you can do is take the hit.' Investors agree, and publicly traded small companies have seen their stocks become less attractive since Trump unveiled his tariff agenda on 'Liberation Day' in April. Republicans in Congress seem unwilling to place the slightest restraint on a president convinced of his infallibility on tariffs. Many companies are finding themselves in the uncomfortable position of absorbing the increased costs of tariffs, according to Scott Lincicome, director of general economics and trade studies at the Cato Institute. That's not sustainable, especially for smaller businesses, and Lincicome is projecting higher consumer prices this fall. Even before its most recent estimate of tariff costs, the Chamber of Commerce had rung the alarm in a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that warned 'small businesses could suffer irreparable harm' from tariffs. 'The Chamber is hearing from small-business owners every day who are seeing their ability to survive endangered by the recent increase in tariff rates.'The GOP tax bill does grant some benefits to small businesses, such as a permanent extension on deductions. Doug Loon, president of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, told me that those benefits may become a lifeline. 'It would have put a lot of small businesses out of business if those provisions had not happened,' he a longtime Republican, remembers when his party saw free enterprise as an article of faith. He also recalls that the free-trade era carried its own challenges, particularly for smaller businesses that 'didn't always get a fair shake.' Loon believes that targeted tariffs, skillfully applied, 'can be incredibly beneficial.' Trump's broad-based approach 'has created great uncertainty among our businesses. And that is where disparities can occur.' Trump portrays tariffs as free money paid by countries that have 'ripped off' America. His new levies have already begun sending billions to the US Treasury. But the reality is that tariffs are a hidden tax mostly borne by US companies and consumers. According to Goldman Sachs data, US consumers have paid 22% of the cost of Trump's tariffs. Only 14% of the cost has been borne by foreign exporters. The other 64%? Eaten by American businesses. Trump has reset the table on trade. Unfortunately, in his hands, tariffs are a blunt instrument used to punish enemies, reward friends and bully other nations. He substitutes threats and intimidation for negotiations and diplomacy. The deals, such as they are, remain vague, with details often disputed by trading was just seven months ago that the International Monetary Fund declared the US economy would continue to lead the world in 2025. IMF officials said the US was growing at a faster clip than its economic competitors, with more productive workers and a more welcoming business environment, leaving Trump and the GOP well positioned to capitalize politically on those economic several key economic indicators are pointing in the wrong direction — a scenario largely of Trump's own making. Businesses are struggling to adapt to his ever-shifting landscape of tariffs. Farmers are getting clobbered by higher inputs and they've lost markets thanks to an administration that ended foreign food aid and cut nutrition programs. Meanwhile, the president brags about the revenue tariffs are bringing, as if everyone didn't already know who is really footing the bill.
Mint
5 days ago
- Mint
Wall Street week ahead: Investors eye inflation, retail sales, Trump-Putin meet
Wall Street in the week ahead will see key economic data and a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. In economic calendar, market participants will closely watch the two inflation reports – the Consumer Price Index and the Producer Price Index, and retail sales data. The investors and Federal Reserve policymakers will keep a close eye on the economic data for any effects of Trump's tariffs on inflation. Friday will see the scheduled meeting between Trump and Putin. Earlier, the US president had expressed hope that a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine could be near. It could involve "some swapping of territories" between the two warring nations. On August 12 (Tuesday), separate reports on NFIB optimism index for July and Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July will be released. On August 14 (Thursday), separate reports on initial jobless claims for the week ended August 9 and Producer Price Index (PPI) for July will be released. On August 15 (Friday), separate reports on US retail sales for July, Empire State manufacturing survey for August, Import Price Index for July, industrial production for July, and consumer sentiment (prelim) for August will be released. Following companies are due to report second quarter results in the week ahead — AMC Entertainment, Barrick Mining, Oklo, Plug Power, CoreWeave, eToro, Paysafe, Cisco, Alvotech, Alibaba, Applied Materials, Flowers Foods, and So-Young International. US stocks closed higher on Friday with the Nasdaq hitting a record closing high as technology-related shares, including Apple, surged. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 206.97 points, or 0.47%, to 44,175.61, the S&P 500 gained 49.45 points, or 0.78%, to 6,389.45 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 207.32 points, or 0.98%, to 21,450.02. For the week, the S&P 500 rose 2.4%, the Dow gained 1.3% and the Nasdaq climbed 3.9%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.28% from 4.25%. The yield on the 2-year Treasury rose to 3.76% from 3.73%.
