Latest AIM Data Shows Business Confidence Index at 55.4
Massachusetts employers closed out 2024 a bit more optimistic about their economic outlook than at the end of 2023, though they raised some concerns in the process about the pace of future interest rate cuts and the state’s competitiveness.
Associated Industries of Massachusetts reported Monday that its business confidence index stood at 55.4 in December, nearly five and a half points above the 50-point line that divides pessimistic and optimistic territory. That year-end score was 2.8 points higher than in December 2023.
“The consistent optimism of employers in Massachusetts reflects the fact that the economic expansion remains on solid footing. Following the November election, businesses are more confident that federal tax policy will remain supportive of investment,” AIM Board of Economic Advisors Chair Sara Johnson said. “However, companies signaled caution about increasing employment. There is also caution about the competitive position of Massachusetts, with the state index trailing the US index for four months.”
AIM’s index, which is calculated based on a survey of more than 140 Bay State employers, dropped 2.3 points from November to December. Over the course of 2024, it fluctuated as low as 49.8 and as high as 57.7.
The national index fell slightly from 57.4 in November to 55.8 in December, a 1.6-point drop, according to AIM.
AIM President Brooke Thomson praised Massachusetts lawmakers for completing a suite of legislation before they wrapped up the 2023-2024 session, including a last-minute compromise overhauling hospital oversight.
“That measure came on top of a multi-billion-[dollar] housing bond bill, a comprehensive energy siting bill, a wage-transparency bill and a $3.9 billion economic-development measure — all of which added up to a significant year for the Massachusetts economy,” Thomson said.
