Community Bank Sentiment Index

The Community Bank Sentiment Index is an index derived from quarterly polling of community bankers across the nation. As community bankers answer questions about their outlook on the economy, their answers are analyzed and compiled into a single number. An index reading of 100 indicates a neutral sentiment, while anything above 100 indicates a positive sentiment, and anything below 100 indicates negative sentiment.

98
The 2024 Q1 Community Bank Sentiment Index Number

This represents a negative reading in economic sentiment by community bankers and is six points above the index reading for last quarter. This is the ninth consecutive quarter with a negative CBSI reading

Key Highlights

  • At 98, the first quarter 2024 CBSI reached the highest level recorded since 2021. The first quarter uptick follows last quarter’s increase of 6 points and is up 15 points from one year ago.
  • While the first quarter 2024 CBSI is the ninth consecutive reading below the neutral level of 100, it marks three consecutive quarterly increases for the first time since 2020.
  • Six of the seven components that comprise the CBSI improved from the previous quarterly survey. The only indicator that dropped was regulatory burden (down 7 points).
  • At 131, the capital spending component had the greatest quarterly improvement, climbing 13 points from the fourth quarter 2023, and back above its long-run average of 130.
  • At 87, the profitability component rose 6 points from last quarter and is up 5 points from one year ago.
  • In another special question, community bankers rated the following as their top concerns: government regulation, cyberattacks, the federal debt/deficit, the cost/availability of labor, and inflation. 
CBSI Q1 2024
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Interactive Dashboard

In this interactive, you can click on a positive, neutral, or negative view in each subcategory to see how those respondents answered other questions. For example, if you click the "they will be better than today" green bar under business conditions, all other subcategories will update to display responses only by those people who believe future business conditions will be better than today. Clicking on the same item a second time will return you to the original display. 

Data Behind the Index

Every quarter, the Community Bank Sentiment Index number will be accompanied with a release explaining the underlying data. Links to the releases are saved below.

Sentiment Index Findings