Reading dips slightly but still well above overall U.S. and the rest of the world

The YPO Global Pulse Confidence Index for California declined 0.5 point in the July survey to 65.8 from 66.3 but remains in very positive territory. By comparison, the YPO Global Pulse Confidence Index for the overall United States for July at 62.8 was 3.0 points lower than California.

"A thriving technology sector, robust commercial and residential real estate market conditions in key metropolitan markets, and consistently performing hospitality, construction and service-related sectors continue to overshadow the negative impact of a strong U.S. dollar on exporters let alone any consumption-related fears that weakness in Greece and China may have on California's economy," said Alan Zafran, senior managing director and portfolio manager of First Republic Investment Management and a member of YPO’s Global One Chapter.

Global Results

The YPO Global Pulse Confidence Index declined 0.6 point to 60.9 in the second quarter 2015 survey. This was the fourth consecutive drop in global confidence from a near record high of 64.0 in July 2014, but each of the quarterly declines has been modest. Across the globe, confidence among the nine regions was the highest in the United States, even though it declined 0.5 point to 62.8. Confidence declined 1.6 points in Asia to 62.0, and 1.9 points in the European Union to 61.6. Confidence rose 1.0 in Australasia to 61.4, and 2.1 points in Canada to 60.0. Latin America recorded its third consecutive drop in confidence, falling 2.3 points to 50.1, by far the lowest level among the nine regions.

Key findings in California

CEOs see continuing strength in the second half. Asked to look six months ahead, more than half of California CEOs (51%) said they expected overall business and economic conditions affecting their company to be better compared with today, down from 56% in the April survey. California companies in the construction and production sections were more optimistic than companies in the services sector.

Very positive outlook for hiring, especially in construction. The outlook for job growth remained very positive with 50% of California CEOs expecting to increase their employment levels over the next 12 months, down from 54% in the prior survey. California construction CEOs were the most confident. A full 75% expected to increase employment, compared with 48% of service sector companies and 44% of production companies.

YPO Global Pulse Confidence Index

The quarterly electronic survey, conducted in the first two weeks of July, gathered answers from 2,127 chief executive officers across the globe, including 886 in the United States, which included 153 from California. Visit www.ypo.org/globalpulse for more information about the survey methodology and results from around the world.

About YPO

YPO (Young Presidents’ Organization) is a not-for-profit, global network of young chief executives connected through the shared mission of becoming Better Leaders Through Education and Idea ExchangeTM. Founded in 1950, YPO today provides 23,000 peers and their families in 130 countries with access to unique experiences, extraordinary educational resources, access to alliances with leading institutions, and participation in specialized networks to support their business, community and personal leadership. Altogether, YPO member-run companies employ more than 15 million people around the world and generate US$6 trillion in annual revenues. For more information, visit www.ypo.org.

YPO (Young Presidents’ Organization)Linda Fisk, +1-972-207-4298press@ypo.org