Is the Glass Half Full or Half Empty?

Business Members’ Survey Responses Definitely Trend Toward Optimism

TACOMA, Wash. –  Is the local economy bubbling over, still filling or draining? According to the 2014 survey, given at the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber’s annual Horizons Economic Forecast event, the glass is definitely beginning to fill.

According to respondents, none feel their company’s economic fortunes will be worse in 2014 that in 2013.  Fully two-thirds believe their company’s fortunes will be better than the previous year.  Those feeling the same about prospects are almost unchanged at about 33%, but the shift has been up because no one feels their prospects would be worse and a diminished number feel their prospects would stay the same. That’s a ripple shift of about 5 to 7 percent, depending on category, from 2013 to 2014. 

There is also a markedly positive feeling about the prospects for their firms hiring more employees, with those expecting more employees up 18%.  That improvement has come almost entirely from the 2013 category of those feeling they would have the same employment levels that year.

These feelings are somewhat at odds with respondents expectations for their personal economic situation.  Almost 58% feel their prospects will be the same, a slight improvement over 2013, and the upward movement in this expectation has come almost equally from 2013 responses in categories of both those once expecting the same and worse for the coming year (2013).