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 country. The BTOS now includes information for businesses with multiple locations.
According to the Census Bureau, “BTOS data are representative of all employer businesses in the U.S. economy, excluding farms. BTOS provides insight into the state of the economy by providing continuous, timely data for key economic measures every two weeks. By providing continuous data with geographic and subsector detail, BTOS captures the impact of events like natural disasters and economic crises and assists in monitoring recovery efforts.”
The survey covers about 1.2 million businesses through a biweekly collection process. Businesses selected for participation are divided into six panels, each with around 200,000 cases, reporting every 12 weeks over a year. The Census Bureau states that completing the survey takes respondents about nine minutes on average.
Data from BTOS will be published every two weeks and will be available by sector, state, and for the 25 largest metropolitan statistical areas. These results provide real-time information to help officials at various levels of government make informed policy decisions and support businesses as they navigate economic changes.
“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,” according to the Census Bureau.
There is no separate news release associated with this announcement; it is being distributed as a tip sheet only.
