State biz leaders express record-level optimism about economy

BOULDER — A year after University of Colorado economists reported historically grave expectations for the state’s economy from business leaders, those expectations have made a 180-degree turn.

The University of Colorado Boulder Leeds Business Research division’s quarterly Business Confidence Index, released Thursday, hit its highest level ever for optimism heading into the second half of 2021 as business leaders have high hopes for the COVID-19 vaccines.

The index stood at 64.4 for Q2 2021, up from 47.9 the quarter before; 50 is considered neutral and the index stood at a record low 29.7 in the first quarter of 2020. Looking ahead…