by Calculated Risk on 11/12/2014 09:38:00 AM
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
NFIB: Small Business Optimism Index Increases in October
From the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB): More owners plan to make capital expenditures, expect sales to increase
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index crept back to its August level of 96.1 with a gain of 0.8 points led by a modest increase in the net percent of owners who plan to increase capital spending and more who expect higher sales in the next 3 months. ...And in another positive sign, the percent of firms reporting "poor sales" as the single most important problem has fallen to 12, down from 17 last year - and "taxes" at 21 and "regulations" are the top problems at 22 (taxes are usually reported as the top problem during good times).
Job creation plans improved a point to a seasonally adjusted net 10 percent.
emphasis added
This graph shows the small business optimism index since 1986.
The index increased to 96.1 in October from 95.3 in September.
Note: There is high percentage of real estate related businesses in the "small business" survey - and this has held down over all optimism.