US leaders neutral about their businesses, pessimistic about economy

The percentage of respondents optimistic about the US economy dropped since the first quarter. Nearly 50% of finance decision-makers are optimistic about their own organisations, a new AICPA & CIMA survey shows.

CPA decision-makers in business and industry have lower optimism about the US economy, but they remain relatively neutral about their own organisations, according to a new AICPA & CIMA survey.

In the second-quarter Business & Industry Economic Outlook Survey, 35% of respondents are optimistic about the domestic economy, down from 43% in the first quarter. Sentiment about the global economy rose slightly (from 21% to 22%), and own-organisation optimism declined slightly (from 49% to 48%).

The quarterly survey gathered responses from 315 CFOs, CEOs, and controllers between 7 May and 28 May.

While sentiment about the domestic economy dropped on a quarterly basis, the 35% mark is well above the 14% who were optimistic in the second quarter of 2023.

The lowered optimism, driven by uncertainty over interest rates and enduring inflation, comes with small bursts of own-organisation confidence. The percentage of businesses expecting to expand in the coming 12 months rose from 51% last quarter to 54%. That sentiment is more common amongst executives with larger businesses.

Projections for revenue and profit increases in the next 12 months rose slightly. Respondents predict an average 2.9% increase in revenue in the coming year, compared with a 2.6% projection one quarter ago. Regarding profits, the 12-month projection increased from 1.4% to 1.5%.

Planned spending is also increasing in some areas. IT expenditures for the coming 12 months rose from 3.4% to 3.8%. While training spending is expected to drop slightly — a 1.7% increase for the coming year, compared with 1.9% in the first quarter — predicted spending on other capital projects grew from 2.1% to 2.2%.

Fifty-six per cent of respondents believe they have the right number of employees — up 7 percentage points from last quarter. Plans to hire have eased; in the first quarter, 22% of leaders said they would add workers, but only 16% say that now.

Leaders continue to cite the same top three challenges as last quarter — inflation, employee and benefit costs, and the availability of skilled personnel — and leaders’ worries are increasing over other topics.

Domestic political leadership jumped three spots to No. 4 on the list of challenges, replacing domestic economic conditions, which is now in fifth place.

As inflation has been a top concern for leaders for years, according to survey results, finance decision-makers are practising vigilance around certain inflationary risk factors. Leaders agree that labour costs represent the most significant risk to their business — jumping to 43% over last quarter’s 38%. Worries around energy costs and raw materials costs have both lessened since last quarter, now standing at 5% over last quarter’s 8% and 20% over last quarter’s 23%, respectively.

Twenty-six per cent of leaders believe that interest rates pose a risk to their business — a 1-point jump since the first quarter.

Jamie Roessner is a senior content writer at AICPA & CIMA. To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Neil Amato at Neil.Amato@aicpa-cima.com.

Up Next

With greenhouse gas reporting, sizable gaps persist

By Bryan Strickland
September 5, 2025
Large companies in the UK are making progress as more sustainability reporting requirements approach, but they could face significant challenges when seeking assistance from smaller companies in their supply chain.
Advertisement

LATEST STORIES

With greenhouse gas reporting, sizable gaps persist

Accountability: Inescapable, challenging, and valuable

US business outlook brightens somewhat despite trade, inflation concerns

Elevating productivity through strategic business partnering

Mark Koziel Q&A: Talent, sense of community, profession opportunities

Advertisement
Read the latest FM digital edition, exclusively for CIMA members and AICPA members who hold the CGMA designation.
Advertisement

Related Articles

Photo of stacked rocks balancing.