CEOs now expect 2015 US gross domestic product growth of 2.5%, down from last quarter’s estimate of 2.8%, according to the Business Roundtable’s second-quarter 2015 CEO Economic Outlook Survey. CEOs said they expect sales, investment and hiring to decrease in the next six months.

The survey found 34% of respondents expect their company’s US employment to increase in the next six months, down from 40% in the first-quarter survey; 26% expect employment to decrease in the next six months and 40% expect no change.

“Of particular concern is the downward movement of our CEOs’ investment plans,” said Randall Stephenson, chairman of Business Roundtable and chairman and CEO of AT&T Inc. “Business investment is a key driver of economic expansion and job growth.”

According to the survey, 35% of respondents expect their company’s US capital spending to increase in the next six months, down from 45% in the first-quarter survey.

“To boost investment spending and strengthen the economy, it is critical that Congress and the Administration pass Trade Promotion Authority and tax reform,” Stephenson added.

The Business Roundtable CEO Economic Outlook Index — a composite index of CEO expectations for the next six months of sales, capital spending and employment — fell in the second quarter to a reading of 81.3 from 90.8 in the first quarter. The long-term average of the index is 80.5.

The Business Roundtable is an association of CEOs. The second-quarter 2015 survey included 128 member CEOs and was completed between April 22 and May 13, 2015.