Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Small-business index declines in August: NFIB

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The National Federation of Independent Business' small-business optimism index declined 1.8 points in August to 88.1, the sixth drop in a row. "The tumultuous debate over the nation's debt ceiling and a dramatic 11th hour 'rescue' by lawmakers did nothing to improve the outlook of job-makers. In fact, hope for improvement in the economy faded even further throughout the month, proving that short-term fixes will not help," said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. Sales remain the largest problem for small firms - a full quarter identifying "poor sales" as their top business problem, the NFIB said.

By Steve Goldstein

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