Small Business Optimism Struggles in June

Small business sentiment declined in June according to the NFIB Optimism Index. The index fell by 3.0 points to 91.4, the lowest level since October 2011.

Nearly one-quarter of owners cite weak sales as their most important business problem (23%), followed by taxes (21%) and unreasonable regulations and red tape (19%). Only 3% reported that financing was their top business problem.

Ninety-three percent of all owners reported that all their credit needs were met or that they were not interested in borrowing. Twenty-nine percent of all owners reported borrowing on a regular basis, down 3 points from May, and a net 7% reported loans “harder to get” compared to their last attempt, down 2 points.

After reaching a five year high of a net 4% in April, the net percent of all owners reporting higher nominal sales over the past three months fell to -5%. Expectations for future sales do not look much better, declining 5 points to -3% of all owners, producing a 4 month decline of 15 percentage points.

Capital expenditures are consistent with the slow performance of the economy. The frequency of reported capital outlays over the past six months dropped 3 points to 52%. The net percent of owners expecting better business conditions in 6 months was a negative 10%, an 8 point decline from May.

Read the report.