CEO Confidence Rises in the Fourth Quarter

U.S. chief executives’ confidence in the economy edged up in the fourth quarter of last year, but not enough to fuel a pickup in growth or create jobs, a private business research group said.

The Conference Board said its measure of business confidence rose to 58 in the fourth quarter of 2002 from 54 in the third. Although any reading above 50 suggests more positive than negative responses, the New York-based group warned that the slight rise did not signal an imminent surge in growth.