President Obama says he has been “friendly” to business but understands why they are “frustrated” with many of his regulations in a new interview published in The Economist.

“They always complain about regulation,” Obama says of business leaders. “That's their job.

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“I would take the complaints of the corporate community with a grain of salt,” he adds. “If you look at what our policies have been, they have generally been friendly towards business.”

Speaking of the Dodd-Frank financial reforms, Obama says his regulations helped hold the global economy together at a time of crisis.

Obama explained that there are “core” areas, such as the financial markets, “where, yes, we're placing constraints on them. It probably cuts into certain profit centers in their businesses.”

“I understand why they would be frustrated by it, but the flip side of it is that they'd be even more unhappy if the global financial system unravels. Nobody has more of a stake in it than them,” Obama said.

The president pointed to a record stock market numbers; the Dow Jones industrial index and the S&P 500 have both reached new highs under the Obama administration. At the close of business on Friday, the Dow was pushing 16,500, while the S&P had toppled 1,900.

Obama also said corporate profits are high, job growth has continued for 52 consecutive months, though at a mild pace, and the national deficit has been cut in half.

“I think you'd have to say that we've managed the economy pretty well and business has done OK,” he said.