Firms expecting employment gains remained steady at 39 percent through the first three quarters of 2000. However, the report found Maryland businesses don't expect the gains to continue. From the second to the third quarter of 2000, the percentage of firms expecting increases in revenue declined from 80 percent to 76 percent. The percentages of firms expecting to increase employment in the coming year fell from 54 percent in the second quarter to 50 percent in the third quarter of 2000. Forty percent of the Business Climate Survey participants said labor market conditions in Maryland hinder their ability to do business.
Labor shortages continue to plague Maryland companies.
The increase may reflect the labor market's absorption of the summer hiring of high school and college graduates. Both the positive and negative views of Maryland's business climate increased in the third quarter of 2000, perhaps indicating expected declines in both national and state economic activity coupled with tight labor market conditions. The Maryland Business Climate Survey is a quarterly poll of 250 state businesses conducted by the Maryland Business Research Partnership of the University of Baltimore's School of Business. The University of Baltimore is an upper division, graduate and professional university.