Report: Small Businesses In Colorado Less Confident When It Comes To COVID, Inflation & Supply Chain

DENVER (CBS4) - A report by the University of Colorado Boulder Leeds Business School shows small businesses are less optimistic about moving forward following challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The Confidence Index surveyed 264 business leaders in the state each quarter.

It shows businesses are concerned about the Delta variant, government policies and behavior, inflation and supply chain issues.

However, the survey showed they have high hopes about getting people hired.

"Cases have been rising again, and I think businesses are reflecting on that as well as new concerns that are popping up. If it's inflation or these really persistent supply chain issues," said Brian Lewandowski, Leeds Business Research Division.

Of the 246 panelists surveyed, 80% say they believe the state will be neutral or positve for the remainder of the year.

"We think this supports the labor market data that we are seeing for Colorado, that we think is recovering well compared to the nation. Colorado ranks 16th in the nation in terms of overall job recovery and created a smaller job deficit than the nation through August," said Rich Wobbekind, Senior Economist and Faculty Director of the Business Research Division.