The Mississippi River and the Interstate 10 bridge as seen from the Baton Rouge riverfront. (Tim Mueller)
Jeffrey Koonce (file photo)
Though a mild recession this year is still a common prediction among analysts, Jeffrey Koonce of Baton Rouge-based Bernhard Capital Partners says he is “optimistic” about the long-term prospects for Louisiana’s economy.
One of the main reasons for this optimism: Billions of dollars will be spent over the next 10 years supporting transition energy projects, and much of that work will take place in southern Louisiana, he told the Louisiana chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth today.
“I’m very excited about living in Louisiana that we have all this money [coming],” he says. “Hopefully all of us in the room can make a big difference in getting this money spent here.”
On the worrying side, he notes that rising interest rates haven’t hit most companies yet, but that’s likely to change in the next few quarters as loans mature, likely creating “stress niches” in the economy. He suggests business owners contact their bankers to make sure they have credit available for the next year.
Other points Koonce raised are:
- Russia is a major world supplier of oil, gas and fertilizers, so the country’s ongoing war could adversely affect Louisiana’s energy and agricultural industries.
- While mergers and acquisitions declined in 2022, business privatization transactions surged, suggesting many experts believe public markets are undervaluing companies.
- Bonus depreciation — a tax break that allows companies to deduct a large percentage of the cost of eligible purchases in the year they acquire them rather than depreciating them over a period of years — falls from 100% to 80% this year and will further declining 20% annually to zero unless Congress acts.
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