Survey of Business Conditions

Tatums Survey of Business Conditions offers unique insight regarding important business indicators.

Each month Tatum takes a survey of nearly 1,000 of our executive and consulting professionals nationwide to gain insight on the U.S. business climate. The survey measures business conditions for the past 30 days and looking ahead 60 days. Our survey is unique in the ability to capture opinions of CFOs, Controllers and CIOs in a broad base of industries across the country, offering a read on the pulse of the US economy. Current and historical survey results can be found below.

Tatums Index of Business Conditions combines elements of the past 30 days and the next 60 days into one number, summarizing our view of the current overall trend. As of March 1st, the Tatum Index of Business Conditions decreased from 5.5 to 5.4.





At March 1, our respondents provide a view of business conditions as a steady state. In January we reported the biggest rise and strongest business conditions in over two years. Optimism in the 60-day outlook took a leap in January such as we had not previously seen in this business cycle. February produced a more subdued picture, with the index for the last 30 days falling by 22% from January. Now March shows a leveling off with the prior month. The overall Tatum Index barely changed from February, decreasing 2% from 5.54 to 5.44.  The balance of those who see conditions as improved-versus-worsened  the next 60 days was almost unchanged compared to February.

The overall Tatum Index of Business Conditions remains at the highest level of the last year and a half excluding January and February of 2010. A plateau seems to have been reached, at least for now. Recent history and the immediate outlook remain positive - but momentum for further improvement seems to have stalled. The economy has pulled out of recession and started a slow recovery. But the strong business conditions and bullish outlook needed to reignite hiring and investment seem to be lacking currently and in the near term future.

To learn more about the Tatum Survey of Business Conditions, click on the link in the table below or download the full report here.

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