Business Confidence Slips to 47.6 in October

The Associated Industries of Massachusetts index fell 1.0 point, with confidence in the national economy at its lowest October level since April 2025.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Economic Indicators

Business Confidence Slips to 47.6 in October

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The Associated Industries of Massachusetts Business Confidence Index fell 1.0 point to 47.6 on a 100-point scale in October 2026. Confidence ended the month 1.1 points below October 2025.

Why it matters

Confidence is being weighed down by concern about the national and state economies, with households and employers facing elevated costs, rising borrowing expenses, and uncertainty over future economic policies. The Employment Index was the only component to improve, ending 5.6 points better than a year earlier.

The Business Confidence Index reading of 47.6 is based on a survey of more than 140 Massachusetts employers, with the Massachusetts Index at 42.5 and the U.S. Index at 37.3 both falling in October. The Employment Index, at 54.1, was the only element to rise, and the outlook for future conditions remains unresolved in the survey results.

The players

Associated Industries of Massachusetts

A Massachusetts business advocacy organization that publishes the monthly AIM Business Confidence Index based on a survey of more than 140 state employers.

The details

The Current Index fell 1.3 points to 50.0 and the Future Index fell 0.7 point to 45.2, while employers' confidence in their own operations dropped 0.5 point to 52.8. The index has been published monthly since July 1991 by the Associated Industries of Massachusetts.

April 2025: 'Liberation Day' tariffs announced, after which confidence in the national economy hit its lowest October level.
October 2026: Business Confidence Index fell to 47.6.

Macro View

Confidence in the national economy in October 2026 hit its lowest October level since the April 2025 'Liberation Day' tariffs announcement. The Massachusetts reading of 42.5 and the U.S. reading of 37.3 place state employer sentiment in the same below-neutral range as national sentiment.

Households and employers in Massachusetts face elevated costs, rising borrowing expenses, and uncertainty over economic policy, which employers say is weighing on their outlook. The stable 4.3 percent state unemployment rate, steady for two months, suggests the labor market has not yet weakened alongside sentiment.

The takeaway

Business confidence readings like this one often precede shifts in hiring and investment decisions, so tracking the next monthly release can help readers gauge whether the decline is stabilizing. Households may want to watch borrowing costs closely while sentiment remains below neutral.