Rockland business people optimistic
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- December
- 19
The nation may be in the throes of a recession and financial crisis, but business owners in Rockland County are optimistic about the local economy and prospects for 2009, according to a survey conducted by the Rockland Business Association.
Forty percent of those who responded to the survey said they expect to close the year with higher profits than they had last year. Less than 10 percent plan to reduce employment next year.
Sixty-percent of the respondents said they plan to increase capital spending and more than two-thirds said they have not had trouble getting loans due to the credit crisis.
The survey also found 80 percent consider the county a good place to own a business.
Al Samuels, the president and chief executive of the association, said he believes the results show the county’s economy is less volatile than other areas. That’s because the county has many small businesses in a wide range of industries, he said.
“Anecdotally, I know that our members are concerned about the recession and are tightening their belts, but Rockland’s overall economy remained stable after the Sept. 11 (2001) attacks and seems to be holding its own through this downturn,” he said in a statement released by the association.
About 100 of the association’s members took part in the survey.
Samuels said he also believes the county’s Empire Zone program has helped. The program created 88 new jobs, helped the county retain 183 jobs and generated $9.1 million in private investment in 2007, its first full year, he said.
He also said the county has gotten a break because its three largest industries are business and personal services, health and medical, and education. Those industries have not been hit as hard as other sectors of the economy, he said.
This entry was posted
on Friday, December 19th, 2008 at 1:15 pm by Allan Drury.
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Category: Local economy
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