There are 34m small businesses in the United States. They employ approximately half of the country’s workers and generate about half of the country’s GDP. They’re an important voting block(投票群体). So how are they feeling about the economy as we head into November’s midterm elections? Overall, economic sentiment for Donald Trump is poor but small business – admittedly a diverse demographic that’s hard to poll – seems fairly confident.(总体而言，民众对特朗普治下经济的情绪不佳，但小企业——诚然是一个难以民调的多元群体——似乎颇有信心。) A number of recently published surveys and reports can help understand their mood.
美国有3400万家小企业，雇用了全国约一半的劳动力，贡献了约一半的GDP，是一支重要的投票力量。那么，在11月中期选举临近之际，它们对经济感受如何？总体来看，民众对唐纳德·特朗普治下经济的情绪并不好，但小企业——诚然这是一个多元且难以民调的群体——似乎颇有信心。近期发布的多项调查和报告有助于我们理解它们的情绪。
Confidence is generally stable(稳定的).
信心总体稳定。
This week, the National Federation of Independent Businesses said that its Small Business Optimism Index fell to just below its long-term average, while uncertainty rose slightly.(本周，全美独立企业联盟表示，其小企业乐观指数降至略低于长期平均水平，而不确定性略有上升。) Labor quality was the top concern for 26% of owners and inflation for 20%. Expansion plans weakened, though 17% still plan to add jobs during the next three months.
本周，全美独立企业联盟表示，其小企业乐观指数降至略低于长期平均水平，而不确定性略有上升。26%的企业主将劳动力质量列为首要担忧，20%则担忧通胀。扩张计划有所减弱，但仍有17%计划在未来三个月增加就业岗位。