Based upon the Business Roundtable’s economic outlook index; confidence in US economy has jumped from 44.9 last quarter up to 71.5 this quarter as CEO’s anticipate increased capital spending and a boost in consumer sales.

During this Great Recession, many small businesses have come to an end, some after decades of operation.  Both consumer spending and bank lending have been low and unemployment rates have been high.  Still, many new businesses have been born out of the recession.  According to Challenger Gray & Christmas’ quarterly Job Market Index, “8.7 percent of job seekers gained employment by starting their own businesses in second quarter 2009,” wrote Jennifer Wang for Entrepreneur. As [...]

Last year’s gloomy holiday sales have caused business owners to be concerned about what’s in store for their businesses this holiday season. 2008 was a rough year for small businesses.  According to a report released by the Small Business Association, approximately 627, 200 small businesses were opened in the United States in 2008.  This is the smallest number of new businesses to open in a year since 2003.  In the same year, approximately 595,600 businesses [...]