Small Business Resilience Being Tested in Changing Tariff Conditions
The Experian Small Business Index™ rose by 1.8 points in March, reaching 47.2, marking the third month of modest gains. Index is down 9.3 from the same period one year ago.
March 2025
- Index Value (Mar): 47.2
- Previous Month: 45.4
- MoM: +1.8
- YoY: -9.3(Mar 2024 = 56.5)
March reading points to continued resilience in economy
Positive indicators for the overall economy persist: unemployment remained low at 4.2% in March, core inflation decreased to 2.8%, rent inflation dropped to 4.0%, and March retail sales were up 1.4% from February. Consumer and business owner optimism continues to decline, signaling uncertainty about the economy’s sustained strength. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has highlighted the country’s solid economic position while also expressing concerns about the effects of tariffs, suggesting they will proceed with caution when determining changes to rates for now.
Despite some economic headwinds and uncertainty among consumers and small business owners, small business owner optimism remains above the historical average. The rate of new business starts has remained very high since the pandemic, and in March the 452,255 new business starts represents a 6.4% increase from February. The three-month increase in the index suggests that the environment for small business owners is strong, indicating their likely continued investment in their companies.
