Business Confidence Edges Higher in February

5 March 2026

Survey responses were collected from February 16-27, 2026. The Current Conditions component increased to 63.8, up from last month, indicating a firmer but still moderate expansionary environment. Forty‑one percent of respondents reported “better” conditions, 14 percent reported “worse,” and 45 percent indicated conditions were unchanged. Compared to the prior month, the distribution of responses suggested improved momentum, with a larger share of firms reporting gains and fewer reporting deterioration. Overall, respondents described current conditions as broadly stable with modest signs of improvement, supported by increased order activity and strength in data center and power infrastructure markets, while ongoing weather impacts and tariff‑related uncertainty continued to weigh on sentiment.