Small business owners became more downbeat in July as expectations of weaker economic growth in the second half of the year reinforced a reluctance to hire, according to a survey published on Tuesday.
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) said its optimism index fell 0.9 point to 88.1 in July.
“Virtually all of the decline was due to weaker expectations for business conditions six months from now,” said William Dunkleberg, the group’s chief economist.