Business Roundtable Releases Third Quarter 2010 CEO Economic Outlook Survey

CEOs forecast increased capital spending; lowered expectations for sales and employment.

Washington – The CEOs of America’s leading companies plan increased capital spending over the next six months, but have lower sales and employment expectations, according to the results of Business Roundtable’s third quarter 2010 CEO Economic Outlook Survey.

“Sales forecasts are down from last quarter, prompting CEOs to remain cautious,” said Ivan G. Seidenberg, Chairman of Business Roundtable and Chairman and CEO of Verizon Communications. “However, they are preparing for future demand by increasing investment in capital.”

Survey Results

The survey's key findings from this quarter and the second quarter of 2010 include:

In particular, the CEOs anticipate capital spending to increase over the next six months:

In terms of the overall U.S. economy, member CEOs estimate real GDP will grow by 1.9 percent in 2010 – down significantly from the 2.7 percent increase in the previous survey.

Third Quarter 2010 CEO Economic Outlook Survey Index

The Business Roundtable CEO Economic Outlook Survey Index decreased to 86.0 in the third quarter of 2010, down from 94.6 in the second quarter of 2010.

Business Roundtable’s CEO Economic Outlook Survey, conducted quarterly since the fourth quarter of 2002, provides a forward-looking view of the economic outlook of Business Roundtable member CEOs.

The survey was completed between September 1 and September 21. The percentages in some categories may not equal 100 due to rounding.