By Ryan Morden
Oswego, NY – Recent indicators show Central N.Y. could be slowly working its way out of the recession.
Consumer confidence is a person's willingness to spend money.
According to the latest monthly survey conducted by Siena College Research Institute, the overall confidence index is at 62.1 points. That is still below the state's and the nation's overall confidence level.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Small Business Administration loans have increased in Central N.Y. during the first quarter of the fiscal year.
Bernard Paprocki, SBA District Director in Syracuse, calls it a positive sign for economic recovery. He said provisions from the federal stimulus bill enacted by the SBA helped.
"Increasing our guarantee size, eliminating fees on borrowers to access the guarantee on bank loans had to have an impact to some extent," said Paprocki.
However, Paprocki said it is too early to tell how much the stimulus bill helped small businesses in Central N.Y. gain access to loans.