The economic outlook for New Jersey among top business leaders is much more optimistic than in recent years, according to the 66th annual Business Outlook Survey by the N.J. Business and Industry Association, which was released today,
The survey of more than 600 business leaders, found that most (37%) rated New Jersey’s economy as fair, but 31% said it was poor – which is 13 percentage points more than last year. Meanwhile, 28% ranked the state economy as good and only 4% said it was excellent.
But, when asked how New Jersey’s economy will fare in the first six months of 2025, nearly one in four (23%) said it would be better. A year ago, only 14% reported it would be better. Further, only 26% said it would be worse for the first six months of 2025, compared to 45% who said it would be worse a year ago looking ahead.
Does that mean we should expect expansion in the coming year? Not quite. Fifty-seven percent said they had no plans to expand, while 25% said they would expand in another state, compared to 14% that would expand in New Jersey. Another 5% said they would expand in New Jersey and another state.
As a location for new or expanded facilities, 28% listed New Jersey as very good or good. Another 32% described the Garden State as fair, and 39% ranked it as poor.
As for their sector of the economy, responses were mixed.
When respondents were asked about the current business conditions in their industry, 34% said they were experiencing a slowdown (5 percentage points more than last year), while 15% said they were experiencing an expansion.
Eight percent said their industry was moving from a slowdown to a recovery, while 5% said they were moving from an expansion to a slowdown. A majority (38%) said business conditions in their industry were staying the same.
About the survey: Questions for NJBIA’s 66th Annual Business Outlook Survey, conducted in partnership with Signet Research of Englewood, were sent to New Jersey business owners and executive staff in September and October 2024. The report is based on 620 valid responses.
Most respondents were small businesses, with 66% employing 24 or fewer people.
Complete results for any survey question allowing a single response may equal slightly more or less than 100% due to calculations made before rounding.
To see the complete survey, click here.
