Research >> Economics
NFIB Small Business Optimism Index gained 0.3 points to 93.1
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The Optimism Index gained 0.3 points, increasing to 93.1. In the 40 months since the “recovery” started in July 2009, the Index has been higher only eight times. And, it has never exceeded 95. The pre-recession average for the Index is 100. There is nothing of note in the composition of last month’s Index improvement. All the changes were small and have varied randomly for the past few years, keeping the Index in a narrow “recession” level range, vacillating between 88 – 94 for much of the last three years. Of note is the percentage of owners who are uncertain as to whether business conditions will be better or worse six months from now. It hit a survey record high, beating the previous record reached in the Carter Administration by 8 percentage points. Not knowing the direction of the economy will always have a dampening impact on spending and hiring.
The labor markets regained their statistical footing. After California “went missing” in the claims reports, jobless claims rose to nearly 392,000 the week after and fell to 369,000 after that. These are numbers more consistent with the current level of economic activity. Five million workers are stll “long term unemployed,” 40 percent of the total pool of unemployed. The average duration of unemployment is about 40 weeks (median is 20), historically very high. The labor force participation rate is under 64 percent, below the 66 percent pre-recession level. This explains a large share of the decline in the unemployment rate; people who give up looking for a job and leave the labor force are not “unemployed.” The 893,000 new jobs in the Household Survey (largely part-time) were inconsistent with private GDP growth of 1.3 percent. Historically, such a large number occurred during strong growth, as in June 1993 when GDP grew at an 8 percent annual rate.
Uncertainty about the election has been a major impediment to spending because the Presidential candidates offered very disparate policies for the economy. That is now resolved. We invested $2 billion and lots of time in “change” but the day after the election looked pretty much like the day before: same President, same Senate and House, more or less. Certainly the major players on the stage are the same, the question is has the script changed? If the Republicans were looking for a new cast and an opportunity re-write the past, that hope is gone. If the President was looking for a re-take of the House, that cast will be the same as well. But, the play must go on and it will. Only a re-write of the script by both casts will produce progress. But writers haven’t talked for months……
Investors who had bet on a change expressed their discontent with a major sell-off in the stock market. This of course creates buying opportunities for those who were hoping for no change and got it. There will be many autopsies of the now deceased election results, and many explanations of the outcome. For small business owners, all the uncertainties remain although the odds of resolving them in one direction or another will have changed for many. But overall, it is now unlikely that anything will happen in November to make them more optimistic about the future, as has been the case for many months, even years now. Let’s see what the New Year and the new Congress brings, as it is likely that current Congress will simply “kick the can” at least until January. One thing for sure, the economic pressure to do something will be large indeed. The November survey will reveal a combination of the effects of the election and hurricane Sandy. Regional differences in the performance measures should be large. Stay tuned.
Posted: November 13, 2012 Tuesday 07:30 AM