Small business confidence in the United States continued to decline in March, with the percentage of owners saying inflation was the most pressing issue climbing to the highest in over four decades.
- The Small Business Optimism Index fell by 2.4 points to 93.2 in March, marking the third straight month that the level was below the 48-year average of 98. The indicator has so far followed only a downtrend this year.
- Some 31% of small business owners recorded inflation as the most pressing issue during the month, up by 5 percentage points from the previous month. This is the highest reading since the first quarter of 1981, overtaking labor quality.
- Results of the same survey found that the proportion of owners that hike average selling prices increased by 4 percentage points to a record-high of 72%, with an uptrend seen in the past 12 months.
- Half of the business owners also indicated that they plan to hike prices, 4 percentage points higher than the February level. Wage inflation is also expected to record upward movement.
Some 47% of owners said they had difficulties in filling openings, 1 percentage point lower than February but still higher than the 48-year historical average of 23%.
QQQ is up 1.88%, while SPY is up 1.11%.
Source: National Federation of Independent Business
