Small Businesses Owners’ Association Slams Obama’s Stimulus Efforts, Sites Weak Demand and Poor Sales
by ilene - February 9th, 2010 2:04 pm
Small Businesses Owners’ Association Slams Obama’s Stimulus Efforts, Sites Weak Demand and Poor Sales
Small business optimism inched higher but all it really means is things are getting worse at a falling rate. Please consider U.S. Small-Business Optimism Index Rose in January.
Confidence among U.S. small businesses increased in January for the first time in three months as the outlook for sales improved, according to the National Federation of Independent Business optimism index.
The gauge climbed to 89.3, the highest level in 16 months, from 88 in December, the Washington-based organization said today. The advance left the measure close to the 2009 low of 81 reached in March, which was second only to a 1980 reading as the lowest on record.
Three of every 10 companies surveyed said a lack of sales remained their biggest concern even as the demand outlook turned positive for the first time since January 2008, the month after the recession began. A majority of small businesses expect profit and employment to decline, showing why the Obama administration has announced new plans aimed at providing credit and tax breaks to small firms.
“This is very disappointing for an indicator of the health of the most critical segment of the economy in terms of new job creation,” said Joshua Shapiro, chief U.S. economist at MFR Inc. in New York.
“The good news was less bad news,” William Dunkelberg, chief economist at the NFIB, said in a statement. “Optimism has clearly stalled in spite of the improvements in the economy in the second half of 2009.”
President Obama last week announced he will back a temporary increase in Small Business Administration loans to $1 million from $350,000 to encourage hiring. He has previously endorsed $33 billion in small business tax cuts and incentives for hiring as well as a plan to use $30 billion of bailout money paid back by Wall Street financial institutions to help community banks make loans to small businesses.
Such aid is “misdirected,” NFIB’s Dunkelberg said in the statement, because the top problem for small business leaders is weak demand rather than a lack of credit. Stimulus therefore should focus on reviving consumer spending, he said.
Recovery In Doubt
Please consider No Job Growth for Small Business Spurs Recovery Doubt.
Small businesses are becoming the Achilles