UPS CEO Scott Davis: U.S. Fiscal Policy a Drag for Business
UPS Chairman and CEO Scott Davis told FOX Business on Wednesday while the economy is on the right track, the White House's fiscal policy has been a drag on business.
In an exclusive interview with FBN's Adam Shapiro, the former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and current member of President Obama's Export Committee also discussed the company's global growth and his succession plans.
On Global Growth
Davis said he believes the current economic climate is on track with the 2% growth predictions for the U.S. economy made at the beginning of 2013.Those same predictions also showed growth in China at 6% to 7%.
“The developing world is still the fastest growing market for us,” Davis says. “The important thing is it’s not getting any worse. I do see global trade [and] cross-border trade increasing.”
Quick Facts
- UPS is the world’s largest package delivery company.
- World port hub in Louisville, KY handles 2,000 packages per 17 seconds
- In 2012, UPS reported $54 billion in revenue.
- UPS has 400,000 employees.
- UPS owns and operates 8th largest airline in the world.
On U.S. Economy
Davis believes the Obama administration’s fiscal policy has been a drag on business. He was quick to praise the current chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, saying the Fed chief has done a great job of getting the country through the financial crisis. Still, Davis said lawmakers and the White House need to work to find middle ground.
“It’s been very frustrating that congress and the administration will not make the decision, they will not compromise,” Davis said, calling for tax code reformation. “Our customer base, the backbone is small to medium sized customers, and they frankly are not going invest, they’re not going hire people until they understand what the policy is.”
On Succession Plans
After five and a half years at the helm of UPS, Davis said he isn’t ready to give up his position yet, but the company is always looking to the future.
"We’re always looking at succession planning. We take it very seriously,” Davis says. “We’ve got a great pipeline but I'm not raising my hand to step down today."