WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 13, 2023) – NFIB Research Center Executive Director Holly Wade joined Bloomberg Markets to discuss NFIB’s November SBET survey and the challenges affecting small business owners nationwide.

Wade shares insights into how inflationary pressures, high interest rates, and the labor market are impacting small businesses. Wade highlights that many small firms report planning to increase compensation in the coming months, which shows the pressure owners are under to fill open positions in the challenging labor market.

“In this last report, the areas of concern still remain labor shortage and inflation pressures, although we have seen some easing on the inflation front…The area that was a bit surprising for us was a six-point increase in those planning to increase compensation…For construction and some service industries, we are seeing a lot of pressure [from] having job openings that they aren’t able to fill at the moment. But there are some industries that are reporting slower sales than they had in the previous quarter. So, it’s a bit of a rocky road when looking at what industries are being most impacted by inflation, job openings, and sales.”

“It is frustrating [for owners]. Small business owners use credit cards quite frequently to make purchases, so they’re having to pay higher financing costs on that end. Loans are more expensive. But when we look at capital spending, and the percent saying they did make a capital expenditure in the last six months, it was 61%. And that’s the highest rating that we’ve seen since February 2020. So right now, it’s not an impediment for investing in their business. They are having to absorb those costs, which is hugely frustrating, and [are having to] pass along those costs to their customers. So, financing is an issue that just contributes to their ability to manage the costs of their products and services, but it doesn’t seem to be a particular impediment as far as capital spending on the small business side.”