NEW YORK–The latest report by the Conference Board and the Business Council shows one of the biggest drops in CEO confidence on record. 

The closely followed tally recorded that C.E.O. confidence in the second quarter dropped to 34 — (a score below 50 reflects a pessimistic mood) — from 60 in the previous quarter, noted the New York Times in its analysis. 

“All components of the measure weakened into pessimism territory,” Stephanie Guichard, a senior economist at the Conference Board, wrote in a statement to the Times. “CEOs’ views about current economic conditions led the plunge, registering the largest quarter-on-quarter decline in almost 50 years. Expectations for the future also plummeted, with more than half of C.E.O.s now expecting conditions to worsen over the next six months, both for the economy overall and in their own industries.”

According to the Times, the pessimism shouldn’t come as a big surprise. This past earnings season, corporate chiefs told analysts that tariff uncertainty had essentially paralyzed their business plan, and numerous companies, including Mattel, Ford and Marriott have pulled or lowered their guidance.

Walmart said that the levies would most likely force it to raise prices, an announcement rebuked by President Trump on Truth Social.

Hiring Freeze“A majority of corporate bosses plan to freeze hiring and reassess investment, the survey found,” the Times reported on the Conference Board’s latest findings. “The share of C.E.O.s expecting to increase their work force declined to 28%, from 32%. On capital spending, 26% plan to revise down those capital expenditures budgets; last quarter, 13% said the same. Perhaps more ominously, 71% of respondents said they were bracing for ‘a brief and shallow U.S. recession’ over the next 12 to 18 months.”