The U.S. Census Bureau has released new data from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), which provides ongoing measurements of business conditions and projections across the United States. The survey covers multiunit and multilocation businesses, excluding farms, and collects information on revenues, employees, hours, and inventories.
BTOS aims to offer a comprehensive view of the U.S. economy by providing timely data every two weeks. The survey is designed to capture economic trends at both geographic and subsector levels, helping to assess the effects of events such as natural disasters or economic crises and supporting recovery monitoring efforts.
Approximately 1.2 million businesses are included in the BTOS sample. These are divided into six panels of about 200,000 businesses each, with each panel asked to report once every 12 weeks over a year. According to the Census Bureau, it takes an average respondent about nine minutes to complete the survey.
The data will be released biweekly and made available by sector, state, and for the 25 most populous metropolitan statistical areas. The results provide local, state, and federal officials with real-time information for policymaking and decision-making. Businesses can also use this information to inform their own economic decisions.
There is no news release associated with this announcement; only a tip sheet was provided.
