(The Center Square) – Not much will change in the new year for small businesses around Ohio, according to a new report released by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).
The survey of the state’s small business owners from NFIB shows inflation and labor are expected to continue to be challenging in 2023.
“While Ohio entrepreneurs are seeing an improvement in the supply chain, record-high inflation and staffing shortages continue to weigh them down as they look to maintain and grow their businesses,” Roger Geiger, Ohio’s executive director of NFIB, said.
Overall, the survey showed 61% believe economic conditions will be worse or much worse six months from now, while only 36% believe they will improve.
Also, 46% ranked inflation as the single most important problem facing their business. Staffing shortages and supply chain disruptions followed.
More than 70% of small business owners said they had to raise prices in the past three months because of higher costs, and 72% believe they expect additional price increases.
Forty-seven percent of NFIB Ohio members said they have not gotten enough qualified job applications to fill vacant positions in the past three months.
As previously reported by The Center Square, Ohio small business owners have become more optimistic in the past two months, based on NFIB’s Small Business Optimism Index, which rose slightly in November to 91.6 but remained well below the 49-year average of 98 for the 11th consecutive month.
Nationally, that survey showed owners expecting better business conditions over the next six months rose three points in October, and 44% of owners reported job openings that were hard to fill. That is down two points from October, but still high and not typical during a recession period, according to NFIB.
