Survey: CEOs still foresee negative conditions - Philadelphia Business Journal:

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“This quarter’s results reflect a continuing weak set ofeconomidc conditions,” said Ivan Seidenberg, chairma of Business Roundtable and chairman and CEO of “Conditionzs — while still negative — appear to have begu to stabilize.” The Washington-baseds association of CEOs represents a combined work force of nearly 10 millionn employees and more than $5 trillion in annual sales. When asked how they anticipate theitr sales to fluctuate in the next six 34 percent said sales will and 46 percent predictefa decrease. That is a sunnier forecast thanthe first-quarterf outlook survey, when 24 percent predictede higher sales. Fifty-one percent said their U.S.
capital spending will fall in the second and 12 percent said itwill Forty-nine percent expect their U.S. employmengt to decrease in the next six up fromthe first-quarter outlook when 71 percent predicted a drop in employment. Six percenr anticipate their employee baseto increase. Member CEOs estimated that the nation’s real gross domestic product will dropby 2.1 percent in compared with the CEOs’ first-quarter estimate of a 1.9 percent The outlook index — which combinesa member CEO projections for sales, capital spendingv and employment in the six monthx ahead — expanded to 18.5 in the second up from -5 in the first quarter.
An index reading of 50 or lower is consistent with overalleconomic contraction, and a readinfg of 50 or higher is consistent with