Survey: CEOs still foresee negative conditions - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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“This quarter’s results reflect a continuing weak set ofeconomic conditions,” said Ivan Seidenberg, chairman of Busines Roundtable and chairman and CEO of “Conditions – whil still negative – appeae to have begun to stabilize.” The D.C.-baser association of CEOs represent a combined workforcew of nearly 10 million employees and more than $5 trilliob in annual sales. When asked how they anticipates their sales to fluctuate in the next six 34 percent said they will increaswe while 46 percent predicted a That is a sunnier forecast over the first quartefoutlook survey, when just 24 percent predicted an increase in In terms of how their U.S.
capitakl spending will change overthat time, 12 percentr foresee it going up, while 51 percent see it Few (6 percent) expect their U.S. employmentr to increase in the next six while 49 percent anticipate their employee base to contracyin size. That shows an improvementt from the first quarteroutlook survey, when 71 percentf predicted a drop in employment. In terms of the overallp U.S. economy, member CEOs estimate real GDP will dropby 2.1 percent in 2009, down from the estimate of a 1.9 perceng decline in the first quarter of 2009. The outlook index -- which combines member CEO projections for capital spending and employmenrt in the six monthsahead -- expanded to 18.
5 in the secondr quarter, up from negative 5.0 in the firs quarter. An index reading of 50 or lowed is consistent with overall economic contraction and a readint of 50 or higher is consistent with expansion.