CEO Confidence index Feb 2015

A survey of 713 small business CEOs found that optimism among small

firms has remained virtually unchanged for the past four months, and

has been at its highest level since the survey began in June 2012. The

WSJ/Vistage Small Business CEO Confidence Index was 115.5 in the

February 2015 survey. This reading is identical to January’s reading and

nearly equal to December’s 115.0 and November’s 115.6. The steadfast

optimism indicates that small business CEOs hold a deep sense of

confidence about prospects for the U.S. economy.

The small changes in the components of the Confidence Index pale

in comparison to the stability of optimism, which remains at record

high levels. This renewed sense of confidence has not wavered despite

uneven news on the domestic and global economies. Nor has it yielded

to weather-induced losses due to the harsh winter as it did last year.

Overall, the data indicate that small businesses expect a stronger

economy, and as a consequence, a tighter labor market during the year

ahead. This will result in continue upward pressures on wages as well as

draw more idled workers into the labor force.

3q14 small business confidence

3q14 small business confidence detail

Optimism among small firms in the September survey rose to its

second highest level since the survey first began in June of 2012. The

WSJ/Vistage Small Business CEO Confidence Index was 110.8 in the

September 2014 survey, up from 109.8 in August and posting a 5.2%

gain from last year’s 105.3. The steady improving level of confidence in

recent months is certainly good news, but the more important finding

is that since the start of the year small firms never lost sight of the

underlying strength in the economy.

Check out this summary of the first full year of

Wall Street Journal / Vistage Small Business CEO Survey. Vistage WSJ 2012

2013 Survey