US CEO Confidence Rises to 52 in Q3 as Geopolitical Risk Falls to 53%
Updated
Updated · PR Newswire · Aug 6
US CEO Confidence Rises to 52 in Q3 as Geopolitical Risk Falls to 53%
2 articles · Updated · PR Newswire · Aug 6
Summary
The Conference Board’s CEO confidence index climbed to 52 in Q3 from 47 in Q2, returning to positive territory after the prior quarter’s sharp drop, though still below Q1’s 59.
Easing business risks drove the rebound: 53% of CEOs cited geopolitics as a high-impact risk, down from 62% in Q2, while energy supply concerns fell to 25% from 34%.
Economic views improved but stayed cautious, with current economy assessments still slightly negative at 49 and only 25% expecting broader conditions to improve over the next six months.
Workforce plans tilted modestly positive—34% of CEOs expect to add staff versus 28% planning cuts—while 61% saw no need to revise capital spending and 58% still planned 3% to 3.9% wage increases.
Cyber remained the top business risk at 63%, and AI and new technology rose to second at 58%, overtaking geopolitics even as external pressures eased.