It had previously only covered 30 per cent of costs. The net effect of this change was measured deflation in child care prices of over 20 per cent in that quarter.
Many of these firms have experienced sharp declines in actual and anticipated profits, and the values of their equities have dropped. Business fixed investment has always been cyclical, of course. When the economy is speeding up, businesses typically respond by boosting their expansion plans, and the resulting increment to the desired capital stock leads to a burst of investment spending.