网曝吃瓜

罢丑别听网曝吃瓜 (网曝吃瓜) Research Center聽released its second 鈥溾�� SBET report, examining economic activity among Ohio鈥檚 small businesses. After comparing favorably to the U.S. in the聽, Ohio looks more in line with the national data in this current period. Employment is an area with complex data, showing labor quality is the lone issue where Ohio was meaningfully different from the U.S. overall.

鈥淎cross a range of industries, Ohio small businesses are working hard to keep up with their customers鈥� demands and are reporting on par with other small businesses nationwide,鈥� said聽Jared Weiser, 网曝吃瓜 Ohio State Director. 鈥淭he main area of concern for Main Street is hiring, and specifically, finding qualified workers is a top challenge for small employers.鈥�

Ohio鈥檚 Small Business Optimism Index

Following two periods above the national average, Ohio鈥檚 Small Business Optimism Index fell to 98.3, fractionally behind the U.S. data at 98.5. Both readings remain above the national average of 98.0.

• Profits are trending in the right direction, with a 7-point overperformance in Ohio compared to the U.S.
• Sales expectations were less positive, with Ohio scoring 6 points worse than the U.S.

Business Health

When asked about the health of their business, Ohio small business owners reported a similar rating as the national average.

• In Ohio, there were 4 percentage points fewer small business owners who identified their businesses鈥� health as 鈥淕ood.鈥�
• Instead, 3 percentage points more identified their business health as 鈥淓xcellent.鈥�

Employment Index

网曝吃瓜鈥檚 new Employment Index incorporates 6 components related to hiring and compensation and turns them into a single number. A higher number means a tighter labor market where workers are harder to find and retain, and a lower number means a weaker labor market where hiring and retention are relatively easier.

The current data signals the Ohio small business job market is fairing worse than the U.S. overall, with the Ohio Index coming in 2.2 points weaker (99.4 vs. 101.6).

• However, data of the past decade shows much more volatility for the Ohio Index relative to the U.S. data.
• The data shows that Ohio businesses had previously expected to hire more and give out more raises than they ended up actually doing.

Uncertainty Index

Over the past 18 months, uncertainty has been a major concern for small businesses, with a spike that has comfortably exceeded past records. Ohio鈥檚 Uncertainty Index closely paralleled the U.S. data and declined over the previous two periods.

Single Most Important Business Problem

Only one issue has a big enough gap between Ohio鈥檚 data and the national numbers: Labor quality, which is 5 points worse in Ohio than in the U.S. overall. While it is the top issue in both geographies, it is much more pronounced in Ohio than in the rest of the country.

View the full report聽.