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 U.S. small business owners' confidence in the economy has increased 
 significantly from just six months ago, according to the <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewsroom.bankofamerica.com%2Ffiles%2Fpress_kit%2Fadditional%2FSmall_Business_Owner_Report_-_Spring_2017.pdf&amp;esheet=51547740&amp;newsitemid=20170427005088&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=spring+2017+Bank+of+America+Small+Business+Owner+Report&amp;index=1&amp;md5=474c4fbad338266c4c9677d4e3867135" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">spring 
 2017 Bank of America Small Business Owner Report</a>, which found that 
 economic confidence ranks among the highest levels recorded in the last 
 five years.
 
 
 The report, based on a semi-annual survey of 1,000 small business owners 
 across the country, reveals that a majority of entrepreneurs (52 
 percent) are confident the national economy will improve over the next 
 12 months – up a staggering 21 percentage points from just six months 
 ago. Similarly, small business owners' confidence in their local economy 
 improving jumped to 50 percent from 37 percent in fall 2016.
 
 
 This increase in optimism, however, has yet to translate into positive 
 movement on revenue expectations or five-year growth plans, which remain 
 flat since the fall. This spring:
 
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 48 percent expect their revenue to increase over the next 12 months 
 (compared to 52 percent in fall 2016).
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 56 percent plan to grow their business over the next five years 
 (compared to 55 percent in fall 2016).
 </li>
 </ul>
 
 In addition, plans to hire have dipped to their lowest point in five 
 years with 18 percent of small business owners surveyed planning to hire 
 in the year ahead, down 7 percentage points from fall 2016. Instead, 
 those surveyed this spring say they are focused on retaining existing 
 employees. Additionally, plans to apply for a loan in 2017 are tracking 
 similarly to fall 2016, with 9 percent of small business owners surveyed 
 planning to apply in the year ahead. The top reported plans for using 
 loan funds include marketing the business (42 percent), investing in new 
 equipment (34 percent) and expanding operations (28 percent).
 
 
 "What our survey shows is a significant shift in the mindset of small 
 business owners from just six months ago," said Sharon Miller, head of 
 small business, Bank of America. "Although some uncertainty remains with 
 respect to hiring and revenue, the increase in general optimism is 
 certainly a promising indicator of potential growth for small businesses 
 in 2017."
 
 
 Economic concerns drop, though health care continues to weigh heavy
 
 
 The survey also found that concerns over most economic factors have 
 decreased significantly from six months earlier, with the most 
 significant declines from fall 2016 showing in:
 
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 Strength of the U.S. dollar (36 percent, down 16 percentage points).
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 Stock market (34 percent, down 16 percentage points).
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 Health care costs (64 percent, down 11 percentage points).
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 </ul>
 
 However, while concerns have declined, health care costs continue to be 
 a chief worry for small business owners, driven by both the business 
 cost and individual cost for employees. Forty-two percent report concern 
 over the health care costs their employees must bear.
 
 
 Of small business owners surveyed who provide health insurance for 
 employees, half felt cost increases have worsened in the last five 
 years, compared to just 21 percent who believe this has improved, and 29 
 percent reporting no change. On the issues of health care quality and 
 availability, small business owners were split, with the greatest number 
 believing there's been no change (46 percent and 48 percent, 
 respectively).
 
 
 More than one-quarter of small businesses surveyed with fewer than 50 
 employees provide an employee health benefit, even though the law 
 doesn't require it.
 
 
 Despite nightmares and long hours, small business owners happy with 
 work-life balance
 
 
 When asked to describe an average work week, 47 percent said 
 "demanding," and 30 percent said "stressful." One-quarter have even had 
 a nightmare about their business failing. Despite this, many still 
 characterize running their business as "fulfilling" (52 percent), 
 "interesting" (52 percent) and "enjoyable" (51 percent).
 
 
 Millennial small business owners, in particular, noted that they are 
 stressed about the business environment. Despite more ambitious revenue 
 expectations as well as long-term growth and hiring plans, 42 percent of 
 millennials report having had a nightmare about their business failing 
 (vs. 28 percent of Gen-Xers and 23 percent of baby boomers).
 
 
 Though many small business owners tend to work overtime — with more than 
 three in five reporting they work more than 40 hours a week — 81 percent 
 are satisfied with the number of hours they work. Nearly all value the 
 flexibility of their work location and schedules, as well as the amount 
 of time they can spend with family and close friends. While more than 
 three-quarters admit work interferes with their home life, small 
 business owners are more likely to report they have achieved a work-life 
 balance (82 percent).
 
 
 For those who have not achieved balance, entrepreneurs report that key 
 roadblocks include too many administrative tasks (46 percent), customers 
 or clients requiring individual attention (44 percent), not having the 
 financial resources to hire additional staff (38 percent) and not having 
 enough employees to run the business without their support (34 percent).
 
 
 Entrepreneurs envision a virtual, more automated future
 
 
 When asked for their top predictions about small business 20 years from 
 now, most entrepreneurs envision a virtual and automated future. Top 
 predictions include:
 
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 More offices will be virtual rather than physical locations (49 
 percent).
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 Operations will be conducted by automation (42 percent).
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 Businesses will go paperless (42 percent).
 </li>
 </ul>
 
 Seventy-five percent of entrepreneurs surveyed say encouraging 
 innovation in the workplace is a priority, and 77 percent say it is a 
 key contributor to business success (compared to 95 percent and 99 
 percent of entrepreneurs in the tech industry, respectively). 
 Thirty-seven percent say they are "industry-leading" or "ahead of the 
 curve," while 52 percent say they "keep the same pace" with other 
 businesses in their sector. For those in the tech industry, 59 percent 
 consider themselves "industry-leading" or "ahead of the curve," and 
 one-third are keeping pace.
 
 
 Technology sector small business owners surveyed are more likely to 
 predict that most businesses will employ a robot in 20 years, compared 
 to their national counterparts (18 percent in the tech industry vs. 10 
 percent nationwide). They are also more likely to consider themselves 
 innovative leaders (73 percent vs. 53 percent nationwide) and to say 
 that technology is the biggest contributor to the innovative steps they 
 have taken (43 percent vs. 36 percent nationwide).
 
 
 For a complete, in-depth look at the insights of the nation's small 
 business owners, read the <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewsroom.bankofamerica.com%2Ffiles%2Fpress_kit%2Fadditional%2FSmall_Business_Owner_Report_-_Spring_2017.pdf&amp;esheet=51547740&amp;newsitemid=20170427005088&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=spring+2017+Bank+of+America+Business+Advantage+Small+Business+Owner+Report&amp;index=2&amp;md5=362188701562545cfcd13e92d1556ab4" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">spring 
 2017 Bank of America Business Advantage Small Business Owner Report</a>, 
 and for additional insights, download the Small Business Owner Report 
 infographic <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewsroom.bankofamerica.com%2Ffiles%2Fpress_kit%2Fadditional%2FSpring_2017_Small_Business_Owner_Report_Infographic_-_National.pdf&amp;esheet=51547740&amp;newsitemid=20170427005088&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=here&amp;index=3&amp;md5=e94e62a58d220a0929307992df2ee38f" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">here</a>.
 
 
 Bank of America Business Advantage Small Business Owner Report GfK 
 Public Communications &amp; Social Science conducted the Bank of America 
 Business Advantage Small Business Owner Report for spring 2017 online 
 between February 21 and March 19, 2017 using a pre-recruited online 
 sample of small business owners. GfK contacted a national sample of 
 1,001 small business owners in the United States with annual revenue 
 between $100,000 and $4,999,999 and employing between 2 and 99 
 employees. Additionally, a total of 300 small business owners were 
 surveyed in 10 target markets: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Fort 
 Worth, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Miami, San Francisco and 
 Washington, D.C. An oversample of 150 interviews was also completed 
 among respondents in the technology and medical/health care fields. The 
 final results were weighted to national benchmark standards for size, 
 revenue and region.
 
 
 Waves of the Small Business Owner Report before 2016 were conducted by 
 telephone, and while best efforts were made to replicate processes, 
 differences in sample, weighting and method suggests caution when making 
 direct statistical comparisons to results from previous years.
 
 
 Bank of America Bank of America is one of the world&#39;s leading 
 financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and 
 middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of 
 banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk 
 management products and services. The company provides unmatched 
 convenience in the United States, serving approximately 47 million 
 consumer and small business relationships with approximately 4,600 
 retail financial centers, approximately 15,900 ATMs, and award-winning 
 digital banking with approximately 35 million active users and more than 
 22 million mobile users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth 
 management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad 
 range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions 
 and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers 
 industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business 
 owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and 
 services. The company serves clients through operations in all 50 
 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico 
 and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock BAC 
 is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
 
 
 Visit the Bank of America newsroom for more <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewsroom.bankofamerica.com&amp;esheet=51547740&amp;newsitemid=20170427005088&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Bank+of+America+news&amp;index=4&amp;md5=6bb258034680098fda272e5e146fea30" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">Bank 
 of America news</a>.
 
 
 <a xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bankofamerica.com&amp;esheet=51547740&amp;newsitemid=20170427005088&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.bankofamerica.com&amp;index=5&amp;md5=b04a0ac7e67ffae04b222d8b5e66f897" rel="nofollow" rel="nofollow">www.bankofamerica.com</a>
 
 
 
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