Bankers in Connecticut and the rest of New England expect their local and U.S. economies to hold steady if not improve in coming months, a Grant Thornton/Bank Director magazine survey shows.
The survey of nearly 400 bank CEOs, chief financial officers and audit committee members about the national and local economies, found them generally positive about prospects for growth and the impact of new financial regulations.
A total of 379 banks participated in this survey; 25 were from New England, with four banks from Connecticut. Among their findings:
- 88 percent of New England banks surveyed believe the U.S. economy will remain the same or improve over the next six months;
- 96 percent of New England banks surveyed believe their local economy will remain the same or improve over the next six months;
- 56 percent of New England banks surveyed expect their number of employees to remain the same over the next six months; almost one third of New England banks surveyed expect their number of employees to decrease;
- 52 pecent of New England banks surveyed expect that overall financial reform will not be effective at all in detecting the broad risks to the financial system and preventing or reducing the threat of a future taxpayer-funded bailout.
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