(Source: Business Wire)
The CEOs of America's leading companies anticipate increased sales in
the next six months but do not see enough demand to translate into
higher capital expenditures or hiring, according to the results of
Business Roundtable's third quarter 2009 CEO Economic Outlook Survey.
"Businesses depend on increased demand to drive capital investment and
hiring," said Ivan G. Seidenberg, Chairman of Business Roundtable and
Chairman and CEO of Verizon Communications. "Right now, we're beginning
to see sales trending up but not to the level thattranslatesinto
meaningful gains in capital spending or jobs."
Business Roundtable is an association of chief executive officers of
leading corporations, representing a combined workforce of more than 10
million employees and more than $5 trillion in annual revenues.
The survey's key findings from this quarter and last quarter include:
2009 Q3 2009 Q2
Increase No Change Decrease Increase No Change Decrease
How do you expect your company's sales to change in the next six months? 51% 23% 26% 34% 20% 46%
How do you expect your company's U.S. capital spending to change in the next six months? 21% 44% 35% 12% 37% 51%
How do you expect your company's U.S. employment to change in the next six months? 13% 47% 40% 6% 45% 49%
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In terms of the overall U.S. economy, member CEOs estimate real GDP will
decline by 0.9 percent in 2009, up from the CEOs' second quarter 2009
estimate of a 2.1 percent decline.
The Business Roundtable CEO Economic Outlook Survey's Index expanded to
44.9 in the third quarter of 2009, up from 18.5 in the second quarter
and negative 5.0 in the first quarter.
"This quarter's numbers show an economy in transition," added
Seidenberg."As the Federal Reserve cautioned this month, unemployment
is likely to remain stubbornly high as our nation emerges from
recession."
The Index is a compositediffusion index that combines member CEO
projections for sales, capital spending and employment in the six months
ahead. The Index is centered on 50, and results can range from negative
50 to positive 150. An index reading of 50 or lower is consistent with
overall economic contraction and a reading of 50 or higher is consistent
with expansion.
CEO ECONOMIC OUTLOOK INDEX
Survey Date CEO EconomicOutlook Index
2009 Q3 44.9
2009 Q2 18.5
2009 Q1 -5.0
2008 Q4 16.5
2008 Q3 78.8
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Business Roundtable's CEO Economic Outlook Survey, conducted quarterly
since the fourth quarter of 2002, provides a forward-looking view of the
economic outlook of Business Roundtable member CEOs.
The survey was completed between September 2 and September 18. The
percentages in some categories may not equal 100 due to rounding.
Results of all surveys can be found at http://www.businessroundtable.org/ceo_survey.
Business Roundtable is an association of chief executive officers of
leading U.S. companies with more than $5 trillion in annual revenues and
more than 10 million employees. Member companies comprise nearly a third
of the total value of the U.S. stock markets and pay nearly half of all
corporate income taxes paid to the federal government. Annually, they
return $133 billion in dividends to shareholders and the economy.
Business Roundtable companies give more than $7 billion a year in
combined charitable contributions, representing nearly 60 percent of
total corporate giving. They are technology innovation leaders, with
more than $70 billion in annual research and development spending -- more
than a third of the total private R&D spending in the U.S.
Please visit us at www.businessroundtable.org,
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