AIM: Business Confidence Climbs Again

courtesy Busines confidence has improved for the last three months, but is still down over a year ago.

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Business confidence in Massachusetts rose for the third consecutive month in May, reaching its highest reading in nearly a year, according to the Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM).

AIM's Business Confidence Index was up 1.6 points to 52.1 in May as other indices also rose above neutral.

"We are seeing signs of strength in the stock market, in real estate markets, in consumer confidence, and to some extent in employment. Here and there, statistics are approaching or surpassing pre-recession levels," said Raymond G. Torto, global chief economist at CB Richard Ellis Group Inc., and chair of AIM's Board of Economic Advisors (BEA).

Despite the positive movement, business confidence was down 4.7 points from a year before.

"Employers are disappointed that the recovery has been so slow and has generated so little economic momentum," Torto explained. "Its benefits have varied greatly by industry sector, geographic region, and firm size – there is considerable evidence that large companies have generally fared better than small ones."

He went on to say that concerns about the effectiveness of policy regarding economic affairs both domestically and internationally also played a role in the decrease.

Confidence among manufacturers was down 0.7 of a point, to 50.6, but was up 4.5 points among other employers, to 54.0.

Mass. Business Climate Remains Neutral