SBA Report Summary

The 2009 edition of The Small Business Economy documents the 2008
recession’s effects on small business as well as their role in the 2008
economy. The report includes chapters focusing on the state of small business
(with brief subsections on small business challenges such as health care and
globalization, as well as contributions in job creation and innovation) and
financing. Appendices include additional data on small firms and a summary of
Advocacy research published in 2008.

• Small businesses in most industries, especially in the construction industry
hard hit by the housing market downturn, saw declines in employment.

• Average unincorporated self-employment fell from 10.4 million in 2007 to 0.1
million in 2008 and averaged 9.6 million by November and December 2008.

• Incorporated self-employment remained steady at 5.8 million on average
over the 2007-2008 period.

• Some surveys found small firms expressing less willingness to expand, hire
new workers, invest in new plant and equipment, or borrow money, at least in
the near term.

• Health care costs remain a major concern for small firms: according to the
Kaiser Family Foundation, the average annual cost of a family premium for
employer-sponsored health insurance increased 119 percent between 1999
and 2008, with a 5 percent increase in 2008 from the previous year.

• Real exports have risen steadily since 2005, outpacing the growth in
imports; the value of real exports increased 6.2 percent in 2008.

• Most small businesses faced a less accommodating credit market, especially
in the second half of 2008.

• Lenders exhibited widening interest rate spreads and tightening terms of
lending.

• Business borrowing plunged in the fourth quarter of 2008 to a low annual
rate comparable to the levels experienced in the 2001 recession.

• According to June 2007-June 2008 Call Report data, developments in the
financial markets had a limited impact on small business lending in the first half
of 2008.

• Despite the lack of very current financial data, a number of indicators
suggest that the flow of funds to small firms was much curtailed by the end of
2008.

A copy of The Small Business Economy: A Report to the President 2009 can be
found at http://www.sba.gov/advo/research/sb_econ2009.pdf and the
research summary can be found at:
http://www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs347.pdf.

Information from the Office of Advocacy - Small Business Association