The U.S. Chamber of Commerce released the 2024 State of American Business Data Center report this week, which examines the nation’s economic resilience, post-pandemic.
The report details the resilience and resourcefulness of the private sector since the pandemic, showing how it has helped the economy surpass many pre-pandemic economic benchmarks.
“Last year we said the U.S. economy was on solid footing at the time, despite challenges such as high interest rates, declining savings, and dwindling credit causing volatility and leading many to predict a recession,” Curtis Dubay, chief economist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said. “We not only avoided a recession, but also the economy grew in 2023, a testament to the strength and resilience of the business community. Businesses continued investing, hiring, and raising wages despite the headwinds. There will be challenges in 2024, but the data points to another solid start to the year.”
The release of the report coincides with the Chamber’s State of American Business Event, which is being held Jan. 11.
The data center report analyzes 12 economic indicators, including workers, IPOs, consumers, supply chains, energy, and innovation to diagnose the health of America’s business community and economy. It shows that at the start of 2024, many of these indicators are trending in a positive direction.
Among the key takeaways, it found that the Chamber’s Worker Shortage Index is near an all-time low at 0.71, meaning for every 100 job openings there are only 71 available workers. It also revealed that the number of IPOs has declined after a surge in IPOs in 2021 due to Special-Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs). Also, rising interest rates have suppressed mergers and acquisitions.
In addition, the report showed that small business loan value has stayed strong. Despite tightening monetary policy, commercial and industrial (C&I) loan value, a primary source of capital for small businesses, improves. Also, even though inflation remains high, consumer spending is still surpassing it. Retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in November 2023, outpacing the rate of inflation for the month.
Furthermore, supply chain strains are easing as the New York Federal Reserve’s Global Supply Chain Pressure Index is at 0.11, down from a pandemic high over more than 4.0 in 2021, the report said. And energy prices are coming down. They had been at record highs but are now beginning to stabilize.
Among other findings, the share of patents issued to U.S. residents is declining, but entrepreneurship is booming. A projected total of 5.5 million new business applications were filed in 2023, continuing at an elevated level compared to pre-pandemic, the U.S. Chamber’s report said.