Employer Confidence Up to Year’s High in November

Massachusetts employers in November reported the highest degree of confidence in their economic outlook since September 2021, according to the latest monthly report from the Associated Industries of Massachusetts.

AIM’s 100-point Business Confidence Index, or BCI, rose from 50.9 in October to 58.7 in November, putting it “comfortably within optimistic territory,” the organization representing Bay State companies said Monday. The November figure represents a 14-month high and stands eight-tenths of a point better than one year ago.

Although they cautioned against reading too much into one month’s results, business leaders and economists pointed to strong national job growth in November and to a midterm election that prevented one party from fully controlling Washington, D.C., which Bridgewater State University Dean Emeritus Elmore Alexander said will make federal action more predictable.

“Friday’s report that US employers added 263,000 jobs during November underscores a continued demand for workers despite the Federal Reserve’s push to increase interest rates,” AIM Board of Economic Advisors Chair Sara Johnson said. “Even though interest-rate sensitive sectors such as real estate have slowed, employers remain remarkably confident in the prospects of their own companies.”

AIM reported higher confidence among businesses with more employees. Large companies had the highest rating (58), followed by comparably less confidence among medium-sized companies (54) and small companies (52.6).

The latest report is the first since Massachusetts voters approved a ballot question that will impose a 4 percent surtax on personal household income above $1 million. AIM President and CEO John Regan said Monday that employers are concerned about the effects of the surtax and Massachusetts must ponder big questions about how to fuel a healthy business climate.

“We used to think about a state’s economic health in terms of competitiveness. Though previous notions of competitiveness are still relevant, it is important that we engage in a more expansive discussion about what constitutes economic health,” Regan said in the report. “This more expansive view includes conversations around whether a state is an attractive place to locate, live, pursue a career, raise a family, and buy a home.”