A quarterly measure of confidence among business executives in the United States has increased, reflecting a more upbeat, yet still cautious, outlook.

The Conference Board reported its Measure of CEO Confidence rose six points to 48 for the third quarter. Still, a reading below 50 reflects more negative than positive responses from the 127 executives who participated in the survey upon which the latest index was based. The Conference Board conducts the survey in collaboration with the Business Council.

“The gloom that pervaded among CEOs at the start of 2023 has lessened, but most are still treading carefully,” said Roger Ferguson, both vice chairman of the Business Council and a trustee of the Conference Board, a New York think tank.

Dana Peterson, chief economist of the Conference Board, said CEOs are shifting tactics amid ongoing uncertainty to prepare for a downturn, but also face challenges from unusual labor conditions.

The share of CEOs responding to the latest survey who said economic conditions were better than six months ago increased 11 points from the second quarter to 28 percent. While 31 percent of CEOs said conditions were worse or much worse, that’s down 24 points from the second quarter.

Looking ahead, 20 percent of CEOs said they expect economic conditions to improve over the next six months, up five points from the second quarter. Another 39 percent said they anticipated worsening conditions, but that’s down 17 points from the last quarter.

The proportion of CEOs who said they’re preparing for a U.S. recession over the next 12 to 18 months fell nine points to 84 percent.

While 40 percent of CEOs said they expect to increase hiring over the next year, 20 percent said they anticipated layoffs. The remaining 40 percent forecast little change.

Fully 56 percent of CEOs reported problems attracting qualified workers and 74 percent said they expect to increase wages by 3 percent or more over the next year.

The share of CEOs who expect to increase capital budgets over the next year fell five points to 22 percent.