The U.S. Census Bureau has released new data from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), which tracks business conditions and projections across the United States. The survey, conducted every two weeks, covers employer businesses except for farms and now includes information from multiunit or multilocation companies.
According to the Census Bureau, BTOS offers ongoing data about key economic measures such as revenues, employees, hours worked, and inventories. The survey is designed to complement other economic surveys by providing timely updates with geographic and industry-specific detail. This approach helps capture the effects of events like natural disasters or economic downturns and supports efforts to monitor recovery.
The BTOS sample consists of about 1.2 million businesses nationwide. These are divided into six panels of roughly 200,000 each, with each panel reporting once every 12 weeks over a year-long period. Completing the survey takes respondents an estimated nine minutes on average.
Survey results are published biweekly and are available by sector, state, and for the 25 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country. According to the Census Bureau, “Survey results give local, state and federal officials essential, real-time data to aid in policymaking and decision-making. In addition, the information aids businesses in making economic decisions.”
No formal news release accompanied this announcement; only a tip sheet was provided.
