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The
National Federation of Independent Business said its Small
Business Optimism Index rose 0.5 point to 98.9 last month.
Twenty-two percent of owners said inflation was the single most
important problem for operations, up from 18% in November.
The economy is experiencing a period of high inflation as the
COVID-19 pandemic snarls supply chains.
But there are tentative signs that supply bottlenecks are
starting to ease, with an Institute for Supply Management survey
last week showing manufacturers reporting improved supplier
deliveries in December. Economists and Federal Reserve officials
expect inflation will start subsiding this year.
Even as inflation concerns mounted last month, the NFIB survey
showed the share of owners raising average selling prices
decreased two points to 57%. Price hikes were the most frequent
in wholesale, construction and retail industries.
The proportion of businesses planing to raise prices fell five
points to 49%.
According to the NFIB survey, 49% of owners reported job
openings that could not be filled, up a point from November. It
said 48% reported raising compensation. That was the highest in
48 years and was up four points from November. About a third
planned to raise compensation in the next three months.
The government reported last month that there were 10.6 million
job openings at the end of November.
(Reporting By Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
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