US small-business optimism rose in the weeks before the election

US SMALL-BUSINESS optimism rose in October on brighter views for the economy in the lead-up to the election.

The National Federation of Independent Business sentiment index rose 2.2 points to 93.7, matching the highest reading since early 2022. The group’s uncertainty index climbed to a fresh record, which will likely subside now that the election is over.

Nine of the 10 components that make up the sentiment gauge increased in October, led by a seven-point improvement in the outlook for business conditions. That metric is now close to turning positive for the first time since Donald Trump was in office, which would signify that a greater share of respondents expect the economy to improve rather than worsen.

Businesses were less pessimistic about sales expectations, with the smallest share seeing lower sales in the coming months in almost a year. However, the trend to date was more bleak, with the greatest share reporting lower sales in the last three months since July 2020.

While firms continued to cite inflation and labour quality among their top problems, taxes ranked close behind. That may ease with Trump’s proposal to lower the corporate tax rate.

Owners seemed to have less difficulty attracting good talent for open positions in October. Some 46 per cent reported finding few or no qualified applicants, the least since early 2021. That was also the last time that job vacancies were as low as they are now. BLOOMBERG