| Business confidence increased sharply from Q1 2021 to Q2 2021, and marked further improvement looking out two quarters to Q3 2021, largely due to the pace of vaccinations and the expectations about easing economic restrictions. Optimism was revised up from the December survey for the second quarter that coincides with momentum in the recovery. One-third of panelists cited the COVID-19 vaccine as the main driver for their outlook, and one-fifth cited the easing of restrictions for their sentiments.
The Leeds Business Confidence Index (LBCI) captures Colorado business leaders’ expectations for the national economy, state economy, industry sales, profits, hiring plans, and capital expenditures. The index increased 16.5 points ahead of Q2 2021, with gains pushing all six components of the index strongly into positive territory. Panelists anticipated strong improvement in the third quarter of 2021; the index improved to 68.8 two quarters out—a record high in the 19-year history of the index.
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