by Calculated Risk on 1/09/2018 06:40:00 PM

Wednesday:
• At 7:00 AM ET, The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) will release the results for the mortgage purchase applications index.

Earlier from the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB): Average Monthly Optimism Sets All-Time Record in 2017

The Index of Small Business Optimism lost 2.6 points in December, falling to 104.9, still one of the strongest readings in the 45-year history of the NFIB surveys. The highest reading of 108.0 was reached in July 1983, only slightly above November’s 107.5. The lowest reading of 79.7 occurred in April 1980. Two of the 10 Index components posted a gain, five declined, and three were unchanged. The decline left the Index historically strong and maintained a string of exceptional readings that started the day after the 2016 election results were announced. Following the election announcement, the Index rose from 95.0 (a below average reading) for October and pre-election November, to 102.0 in the November weeks after the election, and then to 105.0 in January. This surge in optimism has led to 2017 achieving the highest yearly average Index reading in the survey’s history. The average monthly Index for 2017 was 104.8. The previous record was 104.6, set in 2004.

Job creation was slow in the small-business sector as owners reported a seasonally adjusted average employment change per firm of 0.01 workers. Clearly, a lack of “qualified” workers is impeding the growth in employment. ... Nineteen percent of owners cited the difficulty of finding qualified workers as their Single Most Important Business Problem (up 1 point), second only to taxes. This is the top ranked problem for those in construction (30 percent) and manufacturing (27 percent).
emphasis added

Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows the small business optimism index since 1986.

The index decreased to 104.9 in December.

Note: Usually small business owners complain about taxes and regulations.  However, during the recession, "poor sales" was the top problem. Now labor shortages are moving to the top.