Customers wait in line to make purchases at the Dominique Ansel Bakery in New York, U.S. Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg
Sentiment among U.S. small businesses slumped in January to the lowest level since Donald Trump became president, as the economic outlook weakened amid the longest-ever U.S. government shutdown.
The National Federation of Independent Business's optimism index fell 3.2 points to 101.2, the lowest since November 2016, according to a report. That's below the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The net share of companies expecting business conditions to improve in six months declined to 6%, the lowest since October 2016 and down from a post-election peak of 50%.
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