A plurality of firms surveyed by the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce expect to see sales increase in 2024, but optimism for growth has fallen since the first quarter, according to the latest MMAC business outlook survey.
The survey found 46% of companies expect a sales increase from 2023 to 2024. In the first quarter survey, 61% of companies expected to see a sales increase. The decline in optimism was primarily driven by lower expectations among large firms and manufacturers.
A quarter of the 63 responding firms expect a decrease in sales for the year while 29% expect no change in sales. In the first quarter survey, just 7% expected a sales decline and 31% expected no change.
Continuing economic growth and recovery ranked as the biggest business concern heading into the second quarter, just as it did at the start of the first. Price inflation was second followed by labor shortages, a flip flop from the first quarter. Supply chain issues ranked fourth followed by crime.
Despite the lower sales expectations, there was some shift in the employment outlook.
Nearly half, 48%, of respondents expect to see their total employment rise compared to the second quarter of 2023. Heading into the first quarter, just 35% of firms expected to see a rise in employment.
The outlook for wage growth was more muted with respondents expecting a 2.7% increase in wages over the next 12 months. In the first quarter survey, the expectation was for 3.6% wage growth.
