DETROIT, Mich., April 21, 2015 – Business Leaders for Michigan (BLM), the state’s business roundtable, projects that the Michigan economy will continue to grow and outperform the U.S. economy in the next 6 to 18 months. “The good news from this survey is that Michigan’s largest employers continue to be much more optimistic about Michigan’s short- and long-term economic prospects than they were a couple of years ago,“ said Doug Rothwell, BLM President and CEO. “Job providers continue to be bullish on the state and are backing it up with increased hiring and investment. Nearly half of Business Leaders for Michigan companies are forecasting increased investment in Michigan over the next six months.” Highlights of the survey of Business Leaders for Michigan include:
- Fifty-eight percent (58%) of business leaders believe Michigan’s economy will grow while only 37% forecast the U.S. economy will grow over the next six months. None of the respondents believe Michigan’s economy will be worse in the short term.
- Optimism continues to be high for Michigan’s economy over the long-term, outpacing optimism for the national economy again this quarter with 76% of Michigan’s business leaders believing the state’s economy will grow compared to only 59% of business leaders forecasting the U.S. economy will grow in the next eighteen months. None of the respondents believe Michigan’s economy will be worse in the long term.
The survey also found that almost half of business leaders project their companies will add jobs and make capital investments in Michigan over the next six months. The results reflect a survey of Business Leaders for Michigan’s 80 members, the state’s largest private sector job providers that represent nearly one-third of the state’s economy. Quarterly Economic Outlook Reports are available at businessleadersformichigan.com/research-and-reports.
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