An Association of International Certified Professional Accountants (AICPA) and Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) survey maintains 51 percent of business executives foresee an economic recession.
“We saw record increases in the frequency of forecasting and projections during the pandemic, and that trend is clearly continuing amid uncertainty over inflation, supply chain integrity, and recession risk,” AICPA and CIMA Executive Vice President for Business Engagement and Growth Tom Hood said. “We expect this pace to stay strong as companies work on their cash flow through the next few quarters.”
Authorities noted the fourth quarter Economic Outlook Survey conducted from Oct. 25 to Nov. 17, 2022, included 551 qualified responses from CPAs holding leadership positions that included chief financial officer or controller within their companies.
Per the survey findings, 12 percent of business executives expressed optimism in the domestic economy over the next 12 months, representing the lowest level since the Great Recession of early 2009.
According to the survey results, 34 percent of business executives indicated their organizations are seeking to fill roles immediately – while another 17 percent expressed they had too few employees but are hesitant to hire; profit expectations for the next 12 months dipped into negative territory, down from zero anticipated growth last quarter; 45 percent of business executives revealed their companies increased their cash position in the past 12 months, with 14 percent noting they had raised cash on hand substantially; and inflation was the top concern of business executives for the fifth consecutive quarter.