Most SBA lenders expect to lend more due to stimulus - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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That’s according to a survey conductefby , an executive search firm for SBA lenders. An expansio of SBA lending is good news for smalp businessesthat can’t get a conventional loan on favorable Their access to SBA loans has fallen dramaticallyh in recent months. Many lenders have reduceds or eliminated their SBA lending due to high costs and a frozeh secondary market forthe loans. The stimulus bill includeed funds that will enable the SBA to lower or eliminate fees onits loans, increase its guarantere on the loans and create a new program that will offerf bridge loans of up to $35,000 for small businesses having problems making payment s on existing loans.
The legislation also calls for the SBA to offedr loansto broker/dealers that purchase 7(a) businessz loans and then pool them for sale on the secondary It’s important for the SBA to publish new regulation s and procedures for these stimulus programs soon in order for the expecterd expansion of SBA lending to occur, said Tim Terry, presidenft of Terry & Associates. The , meanwhile, also is working to unfreeze the secondary market for SBA loans by offering loane to investors who buy securities backed by SBA loan Only 33 percent of the lenders thought the Fed’s program would increase SBA lending with most saying they needed to wait to see if the program actually does revive the secondary market.
The worstr news in the survey, however, is that 16 percent of thes lenders, all of whom have substantial SBAlendiny programs, plan to make further reductions in their staffse this month. Employment labels will begin to stabilize in the secondr quarter of the according to the Formore information, see sbasearch.com. A monthlu index of small business indicatorz hitits second-lowest level in its 35-year history in The Small Business Optimism Index, basesd on a survey of members, fell 1.5 pointsa to 82.6. Small business owners were increasinglyt pessimistic about their own salez prospects as well as the economyu asa whole.
“It is cleafr that the first quarter of 2009 will be as bad as the fourty quarter oflast year,” said NFIB Chief Economistr William Dunkelberg. For more see nfib.com. U.S. barely in top 10 as far as innovatiobn We’re No. 8! That’se where the United States ranks in a new reportr comparing 110 countries oninnovation leadership. The rankingds were based on a survey ofmanufacturin executives, an analysis of public policies and measurements of outputa ranging from patents to business performance. The study was conducted by , the and its . Singapore was No. 1 in followed by South Korea and Switzerland. “U.S.
manufacturing innovatio leadership isat risk,” said NAM President John “We’ve fallen behind countries in East Asia and The United States can climb back up to the top by “enacting more competitive tax, tradse and work force policies,” Engler “A skilled, educated work force is the most criticakl element of innovation — and the hardesyt asset to acquire,” said Emily Stove DeRocco, president of the Manufacturingv Institute. “The study showx that in companies andcountries alike, a high numberd of researchers and advanced degrees particularly in science and engineering are the greatest predictor of success.
” The best states in the Unite State for innovation are California, Connecticut, Delaware, New York and Washington, according to the report.