Worries over the fiscal cliff caused one in four small- and mid-sized businesses to cut back on hiring and investment in late 2012, according to a recent Vistage survey. A Reuters’ article shared the survey results in which CEOs from 1,601 small to mid-sized businesses were questioned in December, 2012, as concern over the unresolved cliff grew.
Survey results also revealed the following:
- 30% hired fewer employees
- 1/3 said economic uncertainty is the biggest business issue they face
- 11% said political uncertainty is the biggest business issue they face
- 1/3 felt the overall economy had improved in 2012
- 47% felt the overall economy was “about the same”
- 40% expect the economy to stay the same in 2013
- 26% expect the economy to improve in 2013
- 30% fear the economy will worsen in 2013
- 1/5 of executives anticipate reduced spending in 2013
Reuters author Gabriel Debenedetti explains, “Visage’s overall CEO Confidence Index fell for the third straight quarter to 87.0 in the fourth quarter of 2012, down from 89.0 in the previous three months and 98.8 a year ago.”
While the cliff was avoided when President Obama signed a deal on January 2nd of this year, there are still many issues regarding spending cuts and taxes that need to be resolved. Small businesses will continue to watch as those unresolved issues are negotiated.
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Resource
Debenedetti, Gabriel. “’Fiscal Cliff’ Worries Depressed Small-Biz Hiring: Survey.” 9 January 2013 Reuters.com