Federal Reserve survey: Tariffs continue to trouble businesses, prices expected to rise by 4% next year

BlockBeats News, December 17, a survey jointly conducted by the Richmond and Atlanta Federal Reserve Banks and Duke University's Fuqua School of Business shows that corporate financial executives still regard tariffs as a primary concern and, on average, expect prices to rise by about 4% next year. This result may intensify the Federal Reserve's concerns about current price pressures—pressures that could prevent it from achieving its 2% inflation target soon.

The survey interviewed 548 chief financial officers between November 11 and December 1. The results show that respondents' confidence in both their own companies and the overall U.S. economy has declined. The U.S. overall economic optimism index fell from 62.9 (out of 100) in the third quarter to 60.2, also below the recent high of 66 reached after President Trump won his current term at the end of 2024.

Overall, respondents expect moderate growth in employment and the economy in 2026, with the median company expecting employment to grow by 1.7% (similar to recent surveys), and the annual economic growth rate is expected to be about 1.9%. Less than half (40%) of companies said they are hiring for new positions, slightly less than 20% said they are not hiring at all, and about 9% of companies expect to lay off employees. (Golden Ten Data)