Report: CPAs Pessimistic About Economy

Three in four CPAs are pessimistic about U.S. business conditions being able to bounce back to pre-recession levels until 2012 or later, according to the latest Quarterly Economic Outlook Survey released by the AICPA and the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

"Our survey signals the nascent economic recovery that buoyed expectations last quarter is stalling,” AICPA Vice President for Business, Industry and Government Carol Scott said in a statement.

A mere 21 percent of survey respondents expressed optimism about economic recovery, a sharp decrease from 40 percent who were optimistic in May, and 40 percent were pessimistic about the economy, up from 25 percent last quarter. Only 17 percent believed conditions would return to pre-recession levels in 2011 and less than 1 percent said the economy would rebound this year.

However, 24 percent of survey respondents were more optimistic about their own organization’s ability to do well, compared to the overall U.S. economy, the report summary said. Still, this was a decrease from the 40 percent who were confident in their firms in May. CPAs who were pessimistic about their own firms rose slightly to 21 percent, from 20 percent last quarter.

Approximately 24 percent of respondents said they were concerned about inflation impacting their business in the next six months and 20 percent are concerned about deflation affecting their business.

Hiring is also looking grim as U.S. unemployment remains at 9.5 percent and 55 percent of survey respondents said they do not anticipate employment levels to return to pre-recession levels in 2011. Only 9 percent reported their firms were planning to hire in the immediate future.