The U.S. Census Bureau has released new data from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), which measures business conditions and future projections across the country. The BTOS covers multiunit and multilocation businesses, collecting information that complements other economic surveys on topics such as revenue, employment, work hours, and inventory.
According to the Census Bureau, the BTOS represents all employer businesses in the United States except farms. The survey provides updated data every two weeks with detailed geographic and industry breakdowns. This approach allows the survey to track how events like natural disasters or economic downturns affect businesses and supports monitoring of recovery efforts.
The survey’s sample includes about 1.2 million businesses, with data collected biweekly. These businesses are divided into six panels of roughly 200,000 each; each panel reports every 12 weeks over a year. The Census Bureau states that completing the survey takes an average respondent about nine minutes.
Results from the BTOS will be available by sector, state, and for the 25 largest metropolitan statistical areas. The data aims to provide timely information for local, state, and federal officials to use in policymaking and for businesses to make informed economic decisions.
“There is no news release associated with this announcement. Tip sheet only,” according to the Census Bureau.
