CFO Survey Measures Impact Of Terrorist Attacks

Jan. 13, 2005
Compiled By Traci Purdum More than one-half of company CFOs (57%) expect September's terrorist attacks to have a negative impact on their company's earnings over the coming year, while 6% predict a positive impact. Despite the grim outlook, CFOs still ...
Compiled ByTraci Purdum More than one-half of company CFOs (57%) expect September's terrorist attacks to have a negative impact on their company's earnings over the coming year, while 6% predict a positive impact. Despite the grim outlook, CFOs still expect moderate corporate earnings growth of 8.4% on average during the next 12 months. These are the findings of an e-mail survey conducted Oct. 1-4 by Morristown, N.J.-based Financial Executives International (FEI) and Duke University's Fuqua School of Business, Durham, N.C. The study, which includes responses from 669 CFOs at U.S. companies, provided several other economic forecasts: Economic Rebound
  • CFOs predict U.S. economic growth will be negative during the last two quarters of 2001.
  • They also say that U.S. GDP will shrink by 0.25% during the third quarter of 2001 and by 0.34% during the fourth quarter. Larger firms (sales of at least $1 billion) were less optimistic. They predict U.S. GDP will shrink by 0.38% during the third quarter of 2001 and by 0.73% in the fourth quarter.
  • 88% of CFOs expect an economic rebound in 2002: 17% see it in the first half and 71% in the second half.
  • 12% expect the recovery to come in 2003. Employee Productivity and Capital Spending Effects
  • 71% of the CFOs say their company plans no changes in capital spending as a result of the terrorist attacks.
  • 26% are postponing planned capital spending.
  • 3% plan to accelerate capital spending.
  • 51% report worker productivity has declined since Sept. 11. High-tech industries are the hardest hit, with 66% noting a decrease in productivity.
  • Less than 2% have reported an increase in worker productivity.
  • Popular Sponsored Recommendations

    Empowering the Modern Workforce: The Power of Connected Worker Technologies

    March 1, 2024
    Explore real-world strategies to boost worker safety, collaboration, training, and productivity in manufacturing. Emphasizing Industry 4.0, we'll discuss digitalization and automation...

    3 Best Practices to Create a Product-Centric Competitive Advantage with PRO.FILE PLM

    Jan. 25, 2024
    Gain insight on best practices and strategies you need to accelerate engineering change management and reduce time to market. Register now for your opportunity to accelerate your...

    Transformative Capabilities for XaaS Models in Manufacturing

    Feb. 14, 2024
    The manufacturing sector is undergoing a pivotal shift toward "servitization," or enhancing product offerings with services and embracing a subscription model. This transition...

    Shifting Your Business from Products to Service-Based Business Models: Generating Predictable Revenues

    Oct. 27, 2023
    Executive summary on a recent IndustryWeek-hosted webinar sponsored by SAP

    Voice your opinion!

    To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of IndustryWeek, create an account today!