GDP numbers not so rosy for small business
Comment are off
It is great to hear that things are looking up…but for whom? Community banks and credit unions engaged in member business lending are most interested in small- to mid-sized business.
Government stimulus, greater exports and less-severe reductions in business inventories have
been credited with the growth, but data from Sageworks, which compiles
financial information on privately-held companies, paints a far bleaker
picture for small businesses.
U.S. Small Business Sales Growth/(Decline) through 4th Quarter 2009
What is happening…
- In your part of the country?
- In your target industries?
- With your clients?
Not quite an apples to apples comparison. The -6.4% small business figure is over four quarters; the GDP figure cited is quarter over quarter annualized. The better comparison is GDP, not inflation adjusted, four-quarter % change, which was up 0.7%.
The point remains that small business seems to be worse off than the overall economy, though not by quite as much as the article says.