Forward-looking components in the RSM US Middle Market Business Index imply that midsize firms are ready to expand hiring and bolster compensation over the next six months as the real economy reopens and enters a hyper-competitive post-pandemic period. … READ MORE >
middle market
Inflation-adjusted interest rates, investment and the middle market
A confluence of events and policy shifts has coalesced into a unique opportunity for middle market firms to make long-term strategic investments in their firms. Interest rates, once adjusted for inflation, reside in negative terrain. … READ MORE >
Small and medium size firms in crisis: A message from the real economy
The condition of small and medium-size firms implies a potential inflection point in the nascent economic rebound following the near shutdown of the economy last spring. Without further reform and support of the signature Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)—which provided a vital lifeline to those firms during the worst of the pandemic—there will be an increase in bankruptcies, followed by another round of job losses, this time tilted toward the permanent elimination of jobs that support the bulk of the American middle and working classes. … READ MORE >
A spring unlike any other: Ground rules for reopening
Thirty states have coronavirus reproduction rates of greater than one (R>1), meaning that each infected person is expected to spread the virus to more than one other person. This implies that the timing of reopening the economy may have been premature and the rules framing that reopening may have involved … … READ MORE >
CARES Act expands access to loans for small and midsize businesses
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act signed into law on Friday provides various options for small and midsize businesses facing liquidity challenges from the COVID-19 crisis. … READ MORE >
U.S. manufacturing sector hit hard by COVID-19, new RSM data shows
The recession in the U.S. manufacturing sector that began in the second half of 2019 has been sharply exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, new proprietary data from RSM shows. Significantly more middle market manufacturers reported losses to U.S. revenue and greater disruptions to operations and their supply chains than the … … READ MORE >
The new tech economy is all about location, location, location
Economic output in the United States is increasingly revealing a geographic divide, with a greater share of gross domestic product being concentrated in the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. … READ MORE >
Private equity is booming. So why are fewer middle market launches planned for 2020?
A closer look at the private equity industry shows a growing divide among firms. The largest private equity firms – those with individual funds of $1 billion or greater – are driving a disproportionate amount of capital flows. … READ MORE >
Women outnumber men in the workforce, and the middle market must adapt
The December U.S. Employment Report provided a sign that the U.S. labor market, economy and the basic relationship between work and the individual has now reached tipping point. Women now outnumber men in the workforce by 50.04% to 49.96%. … READ MORE >
Middle market hedge funds, facing a squeeze, look to AI and alternative data
The traditional approach of using corporate earnings reports, poring over regulatory filings and mining census data is not enough anymore. Instead, hedge fund managers are looking to alternative sources of information like web-scraped data, satellite imagery, credit card tracking and social media sentiment, … READ MORE >