NFIB Small Business Optimism – May 2021

The May NFIB Small Business Optimism report was released yesterday, June 8, 2021. The headline of the Economic Trends report is “Small Business Optimism Pauses in May as Labor Shortage Slows Growth.”

The Index of Small Business Optimism decreased by .2 points to 99.6.

Here is an excerpt that I find particularly notable (but don’t necessarily agree with):

“The labor shortage is holding back growth for small businesses across the country,” said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. “If small business owners could hire more workers to take care of customers, sales would be higher and getting closer to pre-COVID levels. In addition, inflation on Main Street is rampant and small business owners are uncertain about future business conditions.”

Here is a chart of the NFIB Small Business Optimism chart, from the Advisor Perspectives’ June 8, 2021 post titled “NFIB Small Business Survey…“:

NFIB Small Business Optimism Index

Further details regarding small business conditions can be seen in the full May 2021 NFIB Small Business Economic Trends (pdf) report.

_____

The Special Note summarizes my overall thoughts about our economic situation

SPX at 4233.54 as this post is written