At least one in four small and medium sized businesses in the United States said they scaled down on hiring and investment in late 2012 due to concerns about the fiscal cliff. Almost a third of chief executives surveyed said they had invested less because of concerns about tax increases and spending cuts that would have taken effect at the start of 2013 if the last minute agreement was not signed in Washington. 
Around 30 percent said that they employed less people for the same reason. The poll of small business executives was made by the Vistage International. Lawmakers in Washington averted the full impact of the fiscal cliff as President Barack Obama managed to sign a deal January 2 after months of negotiations. But there are still some issues that need to be straightened out.
A fifth of executives polled said that they were likely to decrease spending in 2013. This was the highest level since the middle of 2009 and up from 15 percent in the last survey made at the end of the third quarter.
A little more than a third of respondents said economic uncertainty was the most vital business issue they face. 11 percent said it was political uncertainty. More than a third said overall economic conditions in the US had improved in 2012. 47 percent said they were the same. More than 40 percent expected 2013 to remain the same, 26 percent said that conditions would be better, and 30 percent said that it would be worse.
Vistage’s CEO Confidence index dropped for the third quarter in a row to 87 in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to 89 in the previous quarter and 98.8 the year before. The US economy is gradually recovering as the fiscal battle in Washington lingers on. Businesses will keep an eye on the talks over increasing the debt ceiling in the coming days.
