Columbus, OH— Friday’s strong jobs report continues a trend of growth and rebounds from August's weaker-than-expected results. The manufacturing, financial services, and construction industries, in particular, all reported strong growth over the past month. The middle market is a significant contributor to this growth, with the nation’s 200,000 mid-sized businesses expecting to grow revenue by 5.8 percent and employment by 3.3 percent in the coming year.
Friday’s report was anticipated to be one of the more closely watched jobs report, as people looked to see whether August's weak results were a blip or a trend. The middle market, while attentive to overall trends, generally has maintained its growth pattern even during prior slowdowns.
Manufacturing proved to be a growth industry over the past month, consistent with data from the National Center for the Middle Market. According to the upcoming Q3'14 Middle Market Indicator, a quarterly survey of 1,000 C-suite executives, the middle-market manufacturers’ revenue grew 7.5 percent in Q3'14, slightly higher than the 7.2% revenue growth reported in the second quarter.
"Looking ahead to our Q3 data, which will be released at the end of October, the middle market is once again outperforming its national peers and leading the country in job creation," said Thomas A. Stewart, Executive Director for the NCMM. "As we see in Friday’s jobs report, the manufacturing and construction industries are particularly strong."
The NCMM will release its Q3'14 Middle Market Indicator on October 29 at the 2014 National Middle Market Summit in Columbus, Ohio. The fourth annual event convenes 1,100 mid-market executives, academics, industry leaders and policymakers in the nation’s heartland to discuss economic growth and job creation. Additionally, the NCMM and the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program will release a co-authored report on export performance among mid-sized firms on October 28.
BACKGROUND – NCMM:
The National Center for the Middle Market (NCMM) was founded in 2011 in partnership with GE Capital and is located at The Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business. The Center is the nation’s leading research institution dedicated to helping middle-market companies be more competitive through rigorous and relevant research, thoughtful outreach, and educational programs. On a quarterly basis, NCMM releases the Middle Market Indicator (MMI), a survey of 1,000 C-suite executives that focuses on key growth challenges and opportunities. To learn more about the Center or the MMI, visit www.middlemarketcenter.org.
CONTACTS:
Jared Favole
Hamilton Place Strategies for the National Center for the Middle Market
jfavole@hamiltonps.com
(202) 822-1205
Jeff Caywood
GE Capital
jeff.caywood@ge.com
(513) 530-7028
Nick Chordas
The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business
chordas.3@osu.edu
(614) 247-4556