The economic crisis is coming: 97% of executives surveyed are preparing for a major recession

A survey by Stifel Financial shows that most executives are preparing for a recession in the United States. In addition, “53% of those surveyed think inflation will be a problem for the next two quarters to a year“.

Most executives surveyed say recession cannot be avoided

Stifel Financial announced the results of a survey it conducted on the state of the U.S. economy last week. The financial services company surveyed 70 business leaders, business owners and private investors between July 18 and August 5. According to the company:

Nearly all respondents believe the U.S. economy is already in a recession (18%) or will be in one within the next 18 months (79%).

Noting that 3% of those surveyed believe the U.S. economy will avoid recession altogether, the firm added that “inflation and a tightening U.S. labor market are the two biggest threats perceived by businesses today.“

In addition, “53% of those surveyed think inflation will be a problem for the next two quarters to a year, and 43% expect high prices to persist even longer“, the financial services firm detailed.

At the same time, half of those surveyed are “very concerned“about inflation,” Stifel points out, stating:

An overwhelming majority (81%) are primarily passing on higher costs to consumers instead of absorbing costs into profit margins, reducing overhead, or switching suppliers.

Many analysts, economists, and executives have shared their thoughts on the possibility of a recession in the U.S. and broader global economy.

Last week, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warned that “something worse” that a recession could be coming. Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently said that inflation has peaked but we are going to have a recession that could last about 18 months. Bank of America has predicted that the U.S. will enter a recession this year and that globally it will be the same.

President Joe Biden said earlier this month that the U.S. economy did not experience inflation in July. His statement followed an attempt by his administration to redefine the technical definition of a recession.