CEO Economic Outlook Survey - First Quarter 2009

Business Roundtable is an association of chief executive officers of almost all leading corporations throughout the world. They represent a combined workforce around 10 million employees and more than $5 trillion in annual revenues. In fact the association meet will be like a great economic summit. This association has released an outlook survey upon the global economic scenario in the next six months.

According to this survey report released this week, the Chief executive officers of America’s leading corporation have anticipated a decrease in expected sales, capital expenditures and employment figures for the next six months. This is due to the significant pressures that the global economy continues to put on U.S. businesses.

The survey includes the following questions to the CEOs of leading corporations and the opinion poll has three choices: Increase(I), No change(NC), Decrease(D).

•How do you expect your company's sales to change in the next six months
I - 24% NC- 9% D -67%

•How do you expect your company's U.S. capital spending to change in the next six months
I - 9% NC - 25% D- 66%

•How do you expect your company's U.S. employment to change in the next six months
I - 7% NC - 21% D - 71%

In terms of the overall U.S. economy, member CEOs estimate real GDP will decline by 1.9 percent in 2009, down from the CEOs' zero percent estimate in the fourth quarter of 2008.