Duke University/CFO Magazine
Business Outlook Survey
Fall 2005
No individual firms are identified and only aggregate data are made public. Please respond by Sunday, November 20. If you have any questions about this survey, please contact us.

1. Are you more or less optimistic about the U.S. economy compared to last quarter?
More optimistic
Less optimistic
No change		 Rate your optimism about the U.S. economy on a scale from 0-100, with 0 being the least optimistic and 100 being the most optimistic.

2. Are you more or less optimistic about the financial prospects for your company compared to last quarter?
More optimistic
Less optimistic
No change		 Rate your optimism about the financial prospects for your own company on a scale from 0-100, with 0 being the least optimistic and 100 being the most optimistic.

3. What are the top three concerns your company faces in 2006? (rank #1, #2, #3)
   World economic stability
   Availability/cost of capital
   High fuel prices
   High non-fuel commodity prices
   Political risk
   Reduced pricing power
   Inflation
   Increased interest rates		    Increased regulation
   Salaries and wages
   Health care costs
   Distribution problems
   Increased global competition
   Terrorism
   Other:

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months? (e.g., +3%, -2%, etc.) [Leave blank if not applicable]
   % Prices of your products
   % Productivity (output per hour worked)
   % Technology spending
   % Number of domestic employees
   % Number of foreign/off-shore
                          outsourced employees
   % Wages/Salaries
   % Health care costs		    % Capital spending
   % Earnings
   % Inventory
   % Cash on the balance sheet
   % Dividends
   % Advertising/marketing

     M&A activity

5. What do you think the GDP growth rate for the U.S. will be over the next year?
  Less than 0%
  About 0%
  1%
  2%-3%
  4%-5%
  6% or more

6. What is the most likely scenario for inflation in the U.S. over the next decade? Relative to inflation during the Greenspan years, I expect inflation to:
  Fall
  Remain the same
  Increase slightly
  Increase moderately
  Increase a lot

7. During the past 12 months, what percentage change has your firm experienced for:
   %  Price of nonfuel inputs
    %   Price of fuel inputs
   %   Price of your products
    %   Earnings

8. What were the greatest drivers of profits for your firm over the past 12 months? (rank #1, #2, #3)
   Domestic demand
   Foreign demand (exports)
   Cost cutting
   Outsourcing
   IT efficiency/IT productivity gains
   Non-IT efficiency/productivity gains		    Fallback in energy prices
   Operating leverage
   Depreciation charges
   Accounting reserves
   Other:

9. In the past year, has your company taken steps to reduce fuel costs?
  No
  Yes →

 If Yes, what steps? (check all that apply)
      More fuel-efficient fleet
      More efficient shipping methods (e.g., consolidate shipments)
      Switch means of shipping (e.g., from air to rail)
      Improved facility management (e.g. reduced lighting)
      More efficient production process
      Hedging
      Telecommuting
      Less business travel
      Switching fuel source (from what  to what )
      Other  

10. On November 14, 2005 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.6%. Please complete the following:

a. Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P 500 return will be:

Worst Case: There is a 1-in-10
chance the actual average
return will be less than:

             %		 Best Guess:
I expect the
return to be:

%		 Best Case: There is a 1-in-10
chance the actual average
return will be greater than:

          %

b. During the next year, I expect the S&P 500 return will be:

Worst Case: There is a 1-in-10
chance the actual return will
be less than:

             %		 Best Guess:
I expect the
return to be:

%		 Best Case: There is a 1-in-10
chance the actual return will
be greater than:

          %

Please check one from each category that best describes your company:

     a. Industry
       Retail/Wholesale
       Mining/Construction
       Manufacturing
       Transportation/Energy
       Communications/Media		       Tech [Software/Biotech]
      Banking/Finance/Insurance
      Service/Consulting
      Healthcare/Pharmaceutical
      Other  
  b. Sales Revenue  c. Number of Employees
       Less than $25 million
       $25-$99 million
       $100-$499 million
       $500-$999 million
       $1-$4.9 billion
       $5-$9.9 billion
       More than $10 billion		       Fewer than 100
      100-499
      500-999
      1,000-2,499
      2,500-4,999
      5,000-9,999
      More than 10,000
  d. Headquarters   e. Ownership
       Northeast U.S.
       Mountain U.S.
       Midwest U.S.
       South Central U.S.
       South Atlantic U.S.
       Pacific U.S.
       Canada
       Central/Latin America
       Europe
       Asia		       Public, NYSE
      Public, NASDAQ/AMEX
      Private
      Government
      Nonprofit
  f. Foreign Sales g. Your job title (e.g., CFO, Asst. Treasurer, etc):
       0%
       1-24%
       25-50%
       More than 50%		        

� Duke University, 2005