US corporate CEOs confidence index hits largest drop in nearly 50 years

The US government's arbitrary waving of the "tariff stick" against trading partners has been widely questioned domestically in the United States. Trade conflicts have led to a continued spread of pessimism among American businesses and industry professionals about the economic outlook, bringing huge uncertainty to the US economy. Data released by the US economic research institution World Business Federation recently showed that the CEO confidence index for the second quarter of 2025 in the United States dropped from 60 points to 34 points, the lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2022, and also the largest month-on-month decline since the survey began in 1976. It is widely believed that a index below 50 indicates that CEOs are pessimistic about the economic outlook.