march survey results show 18% of accountants reporting "much" better overall results than a year ago and 26% reporting "somewhat" better results. source: 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
tax accountants are finishing the 2011 busy season with stronger results than they expected, but – perhaps surprisingly — not as strong as last year, despite somewhat improved economic conditions.
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research suggests that many accounting firms may have over-reacted to the 2007 market crash by cutting staff and billing rates, leaving them unprepared to capitalize on the opportunities of the 2011 recovery.
small business optimism slumps in march, according to surepayroll.
the index fell two percentage points from february to 69 percent in march, with hiring is down 2.2% year-to-date. “while large businesses, medium-sized businesses and even larger small businesses may be seeing improvements in hiring, the smallest of businesses aren’t,” the company said. read more →
the middle-class has been picking up more of the tab for federal spending since the late 1980’s, and the rich have been paying progressively less. above-average burdens, for instance, appear thick and red and below-average thin and blue.
(all employees, bookkeeping and accounting sector, seasonally adjusted)
seasonally-adjusted employment sinks to 874,100.
that’s down from 876,400 in january, according to new government data, and part of a consistent decline since january 2008.
meanwhile, the nation and economy overall added 192,000 jobs to non-farm payrolls in february, the fastest pace in nine months. the unemployment rate declined to 8.9 percent, almost a two-year low.
economists suggest the economy may be shifting into higher gear. but you wouldn’t know it from the employment trends in the almost million-person accounting and bookkeeping sector.
cpas expressed their highest level of optimism on the u.s. economy since the third quarter of 2007, according to the latest aicpa/unc quarterly economic outlook survey.
in addition, there was a slight improvement in expectations for hiring and an uptick in plans for capital spending for it and other areas over the next 12 months. on the broader level, there was concern about inflation.
half of baby boomer clients who have postponed retirement due to the economic downturn expect to work at least four years longer than they originally planned, according to cpa financial planners.
fifty-two percent of cpa financial planners said their clients – who typically have between $500,000 and $5 million in assets – are at least somewhat confident in the stock market now — a turnaround from a year ago when 54 percent said their clients were not very confident.
more highlights:
48 percent of cpa financial planners said their typical client is somewhat or very pessimistic about the u.s. economy amid gaping budget deficits and high unemployment.
51 percent of cpa financial planners said at least one client was turned down for a mortgage or refinance in the past year. the most common reasons: lower home values and higher underwriting standards.
44 percent of cpa financial planners said their average client emerged from the recession with increased net worth and 17 percent saw their net worth stay the same.
or have you just been riding the wave? today’s winning firms are the ones who have prepared for times like these. “the accounting business is good if you are ready for it,” carl george, the legendary chief executive of clifton … continued
job confidence rises. the mergis accounting and finance employee confidence index, a measure of overall confidence among u.s. accounting and finance workers, edged up 2.2 points to 56.1 in the fourth quarter of 2010, suggesting an increased numbers of professionals … continued
up 1.4% in 2010 after 7% drop in 2009. deloitte takes top spot from pwc.
via “the 2010 big four firms performance analysis” by big4.com
after an extraordinary period of continuous revenue growth from the early 2000s to 2008, combined revenue for the big four firms fell 7% in 2009, then recovered in 2010 and seems headed for bigger advances this year, according to “the 2010 big four firms performance analysis” by big4.com.
source: big4.com
in 2009, revenue decreases in us dollar percentage terms ranged from negative 5% for deloitte to negative 7% each for ernst & young and pricewaterhousecoopers to negative 11% for kpmg. but in 2010, the situation improved remarkably, with $95 billion combined revenue for the four firms in fiscal 2010 increasing 1.4% from $94 billion in fiscal 2009 in us dollar terms.
instant download: click for the 2010 big four firms performance analysis by big4.com (pdf, 18 pages)
revenue increases in us dollar percentage terms ranged from negative 0.9% for ernst & young, 1.5% for pwc, 1.8% for deloitte and 2.6% for the fastest-grower, kpmg. kpmg also had positive growth in all its three regions and narrowed its revenue gap with e&y. e&y was the only firm whose full year revenues shrank, though the firm indicated that the second half of the fiscal year was much stronger, especially in advisory and tas.
the big story of 2010 was that deloitte with its 1.8% growth was able to beat pricewaterhousecoopers with its 1.5% growth to gain first place and become the largest accounting firm on the planet. in 2009, pwc was narrowly ahead of deloitte, but deloitte’s 2010 revenues of $26.578 billion was ahead of pwc’s 2010 revenues of $26.569 billion by an ultra-slim, but very significant, $9 million. ernst & young took the third spot at $21.3 billion, and kpmg maintained its position as the smallest of the big four firms at $20.6 billion, but narrowed the gap against e&y. read more →
the good news: fewer layoffs. according to a survey of u.s. accounting firms released by sageworks, there is reason for optimism in 2011. about 66% of accountants surveyed by sageworks say they expect business headcounts to remain unchanged in 2011, … continued
in september, only 17% of accountants predicted a tougher season than last year’s. by december, the number had risen to 28%. q: for you personally, how do you expect busy season 2011 to compare to the 2010 season? accountants looking … continued
but no recovery until 2012. via aicpa after a dramatic drop last quarter, cpa executives regained modest optimism in the past three months about prospects for the u.s. economy but believe the recovery will be slow and they are cautious … continued
