CEOs of the largest U.S. companies ended the second quarter with less confidence in the economy and greater caution around hiring and capital investments.
The findings come from the Business Roundtable's "Q2 CEO Economic Outlook Survey," which was released June 15. The survey was conducted from May 16 to June 3, with 177 CEOs completing it. (A full list of all 238 members of the Business Roundtable can be found here.)
The CEO Economic Outlook Index declined 19 points from last quarter to 96, still well above its long-run average of 84 but the sixth largest quarterly decline in the history of the index.
Compared to last quarter, CEOs' plans for hiring decreased 22 points to a value of 90; plans for capital investment decreased 20 points to a value of 86; and expectations for sales decreased 15 points to a value of 111.