(NewsNation) — While CEOs are feeling less concerned about President Donald Trump's tariffs, a growing number still expect to cut headcount over the next year.

About a third of CEOs (34%) plan to shrink their workforce over the next 12 months, up from 28% last quarter, according to the Conference Board's latest CEO confidence survey released Thursday.

The uptick marks the fifth straight quarterly increase and the first time since 2020 that more CEOs expect to reduce the size of their workforce than expand it.

At the same time, recession fears among CEOs have significantly declined — from 83% expecting a downturn in the next 12 to 18 months in the second quarter to just 36% last quarter.

CEO confidence rebounded in the third quarter following a collapse driven by trade war uncertainty,

See Full Page