From Chernobyl, to Bama, and Back -- Part 2 apr.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from apr.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Alabama business prospects looking good for the future
Small businesses expecting growth By Kelvin Reynolds | April 19, 2021 at 9:21 PM CDT - Updated April 19 at 9:21 PM
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - Analysts with the University of Alabama Center for Business and Economic Research surveyed people who feel very strongly about the future of Alabama’s business going into the next financial quarter.
They surveyed business leaders at the local and state level and were given feedback that now appears in Alabama’s Business Confidence Index.
It uses a scale that ranges from very good to not good. This scale gives business leaders a perspective on what the next economic quarter could look like.
An APR news feature From Chernobyl, to Bama, and Back
“I have a picture we took at the lake the other day, with Ivan and my other three kids,” said Susan Lee, who lives in Pelham Alabama. “And, I showed somebody the other day, and I said ‘here’s my four kids.I have four kids.’ So, he’s part of our family.”
Susan Lee, of Pelham, Alabama
Credit UACPT
It’s not unusual to have a favorite family group shot. But, in this case, getting everyone together to say cheese took 15 years. The reunion took place at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in central Alabama. It’s late June of 2019, and no one is wearing a face mask. The COVID-19 outbreak is still eight months away.
State business leaders bullish on growth, survey shows
Updated 10:35 AM;
Alabama’s business leaders are more optimistic about the state’s economy than at any time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with several planning to increase hiring.
An index of more than 50 indicates a positive forecast compared to the previous quarter, and the higher the number, the more confident the forecast.
The index combines statewide and national forecasts, sales, profits, hiring and capital expenditures.
Susannah Robichaux, a socioeconomic analyst for the center, said the outlook suggests Alabama’s business leaders are “shaking off the pandemic.”
“When there is a higher ABCI, it signals that business leaders are feeling optimistic about the coming quarter, which is absolutely informing their own decisions about their businesses,” Robichaux said.