Business execs wary of economy

A quarterly survey by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) of CEOs, CFOs, controllers, and senior managers found more than a third pessimistic about the nation’s economy over the next 12 months. It is the worst AICPA survey outlook in more than three years. Revenue, profit, expansion plans, and spending rank high as significant concerns.

The number of respondents optimistic about the economy declined 28% in the first quarter of 2016, compared to 45% in fourth quarter 2015.

In each quarter of 2015, survey respondents ranked their top concern as “regulatory requirements/changes,” but that changed in the first quarter to “domestic economic conditions.”

The survey was conducted Feb. 9–14 and had 540 qualified respondents. Seventy-one percent were from privately owned companies.