The Accountants Confidence Index straddled the line that separates growth and contraction this month, with the mid-term showing growth and the short-term forecasting a very slight contraction.
The ACI, published in partnership with ADP, is a monthly economic indicator that leverages the insights of accountants into the strength and prospects of businesses in the U.S. The 3-Month ACI came in at 49.95, a large drop from the previous month's 51.9 that took it just below the 50-mark that separates expectations of growth from expectations of contraction. The 6-Month ACI, meanwhile, came in at 53.66, down two full points from last month's 55.46.
Many of the index components dropped by two points or more; the biggest decline was in the six-month expectations for growth at respondents' large-business clients, which declined by three points.
The ACI is created from a monthly poll of the Accounting Today Executive Research Council, an online community of more than 1,500 tax and accounting professionals.