Our Fortune 500 CEO poll is out this morning, and it shows big company CEOs are notably optimistic about the economy. Some highlights:
— Roughly half—48%—think the economy will be better in the next 12 months than it has been in the last 12.
— Nearly two-thirds—63%—don’t think we will face a recession in the next two years.
— 82% expect to hire more employees over the next two years.
— Roughly half—49%—think President Trump’s policies have been “better than they expected” for their companies; only 18% think they have been “worse than expected.”
— 77% expect the new tax law to reduce their tax liability this year. And what will they use that money for? Increased dividends and share buybacks (50%), reinvestment in the company (43%), additional hiring (32%), additional R&D (32%), and additional wages and employee benefits (29%).
I must add something Fortune didn’t feature in the highlights: When asked what the biggest risk to their businesses over the next year would be, the top response was “a trade war with China.”