## Figure 1.6. United States: Business Confidence and Economic Risk Taking

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**Canonical URL:** [Figure 1.6. United States: Business Confidence and Economic Risk Taking](https://www.imf.org/-/media/files/publications/gfsr/2017/april/chapter-1/figure1-6.pdf)

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### Small Business Optimism Index (Feb. 2017 = 100)
- Index benchmark: Feb. 2017 = 100
- Historical index values shown on the figure range from 75 to 105 (y-axis labels: 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105).
- Time axis points shown: 1980, 85, 90, 95, 2000, 05, 10, 15.
- Annotation: "Business optimism has spiked ..."
- Shaded areas indicate economic recessions.
- Sources: Federal Reserve; National Bureau of Economic Research; National Federation of Independent Business; and IMF staff estimates.

### Capital Expenditures as a Share of Total Firm Assets (Nonfinancial corporate sector; percent)
- Series expressed in percent of total firm assets.
- Time axis points shown: 1980, 85, 90, 95, 2000, 05, 10, 15.
- Average 1980–2000 = 5.8 percent
- Average 2002–16 = 4.5 percent
- Annotation: "... as policy signals favor a boost to capital expenditure."
- Figure marks "4%" on the chart.
- Shaded areas indicate economic recessions.
- Sources: Federal Reserve; National Bureau of Economic Research; National Federation of Independent Business; and IMF staff estimates.

*Sources: Federal Reserve; National Bureau of Economic Research; National Federation of Independent Business; and IMF staff estimates. Note: Shaded areas indicate economic recessions.*

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_Source: https://www.imf.org/-/media/files/publications/gfsr/2017/april/chapter-1/figure1-6.pdf_