SmallBusinessNewz

Last month, when the National Federation of Independent Business released a report documenting small business owners' optimism, we tried to look on the positive side of the statistics.  This month, there's pretty much no option but to let the pessimists prevail.

Eight of the index's components declined during March, while only two improved.  Apparently owner spending and hiring plans have hit record lows, and so have expectations for gains in real sales.

As for some other factors, an NFIB statement revealed, "Over the next three months, 12 percent plan to reduce employment (up 2 points), and 12 percent plan to create new jobs (down 1 point), yielding a seasonally adjusted net negative 10 percent of owners planning to create new jobs, seven points lower than February."

Pretty much the only good news is that the overall optimism index reading still constitutes just the second-lowest one in history.  Plus, considering that the Dow's risen around 730 points since this time last month, there's the hope that economic factors have finally stopped plummeting.

NFIB Chief Economist William Dunkelberg stated, "There are signs that the economy is bottoming in the reports of sales, housing starts and auto purchases, but they were not strong enough in March to lift the spirits of small business owners."