NABE: Business Continuing Slow But Steady Growth
07/27/2010
"NABE's July 2010 Industry Survey confirms that the U.S. recovery continued through the second quarter, although at a slower pace than earlier in the year," said William Strauss, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. "Industry demand increased for a fourth consecutive quarter, although at a slower pace. Price and cost pressures were contained, allowing profits to edge higher. The labor market continued to improve, with increases in current hiring and a rise in the percentage of firms planning to add workers over the next six months. Capital spending remained stable over the past year. Credit and debt issues in Europe will likely negatively impact just over a third of the surveyed firms over the next three months."
Those surveyed expected economic growth for the remainder of the year to be positive, but expectations decreased somewhat from the previous quarter. Approximately 20 percent of respondents said real GDP would expand by more than 3 three percent. But 67 percent said the economy would grow by more than 2 percent in 2010.
The second quarter of 2010 saw net positive payroll gains. More than 30 percent of companies increased payrolls during that time, a striking increase from the 6 percent of firms that did so last year. And only 14 percent of companies reported job cuts, a decline from the 36 percent that responded as such last year. Nearly 40 percent of firms expected to add employees over the next six months, the highest level since January 2008.
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