Deloitte’s latest CFO survey shows a marked decrease in confidence among North American finance chiefs in the second quarter of 2025, though it’s been lower within recent years.
In its quarterly CFO Signals survey released Tuesday, the Big Four accounting firm reported an overall “confidence score” of 5.4 out of 10 in this year’s second quarter. Deloitte officials said that corresponds to a “medium” confidence rating.
For comparison, in the first quarter, Deloitte’s CFO survey showed a rating of 6.4, indicating a high level of confidence.
CFOs’ risk appetite also declined notably in the second quarter. Just about a third of respondents said now is a good time to take greater risks, according to Deloitte. That’s a notable drop from 60% who said the same in the first quarter of the year.
What’s dragging down CFO confidence? The survey results don’t provide a great deal of specificity on that front, but responses to questions about risk may provide some clues. For instance, many respondents cited the economy (53%) and cybersecurity (51%) among the top external risks facing their organizations. Concerns about interest rates and supply chain disruptions weren’t far behind at 43%.
“The effects of tariffs are likely captured within our broader question about external risks,” said Steve Gallucci, U.S. and global leader of Deloitte’s CFO Program, in an email to CFO.com. “Since CFOs are often closely involved in supply chain management, we believe that concerns about trade policy and tariffs are reflected in their responses to questions about supply chain disruption and external risks overall.”
Meanwhile, CFOs apparently aren’t feeling any more optimistic about the broader North American economy. Only 23% of respondents believe the continent’s economy is good or very good. Deloitte officials said that percentage is “well down from results in the previous six months.” Just 11% expect business conditions to improve in a year.
“The significant decrease in optimism regarding both the current and future status of key regional economies likely contributed to the decline,” Gallucci noted. “Ongoing economic uncertainty may also be a factor. Notably, CFOs identified the economy as their top external risk this quarter.”
While the survey showed a sizable decline in confidence from last quarter to this quarter, it’s worth putting the number into context. For instance, it was only in Q4 2024 that Deloitte reported a CFO confidence rating of 5.8, which, at the time, the firm said was the “highest reading in 10 quarters.”
What’s more, the CFO confidence rating metric was marginally lower in Q2 2024 at 5.3.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the rating hit a low of 4.6, the lowest it has been since Deloitte began reporting the CFO confidence rating in 2021.
Still, Gallucci emphasized the “sharp drop” in CFO confidence this go-round. The decline from 6.4 to 5.4 represented the “second-largest quarterly decline we’ve recorded,” he noted. “These fluctuations underscore the sensitivity of CFO sentiment to shifts in the economic environment.”
Deloitte’s CFO Signals survey queried 200 finance chiefs in the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 4-18. Respondents worked at companies with revenue of at least $1 billion.
