Member Article

North West business confidence falls

Business confidence in the North West fell 17 points during July to three per cent, according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.

Firms’ confidence in their business prospects stood at three per cent, down 22 points since June. Meanwhile, companies’ optimism in the economy fell 12 points to two per cent. Together, giving an overall confidence of three per cent.

The Business Barometer questions 1,200 businesses monthly and provides early signals about UK economic trends both regionally and nationwide.

Across the UK, overall confidence held steady at 13 per cent as firms’ confidence in their own prospects slipped three points to 19 per cent, while their economic optimism remained at five per cent.

Martyn Kendrick, regional director for North West at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “While it’s disappointing to see that confidence has fallen this month, the region has a robust local economy and a resilient local business community.

“Although it is difficult to plan amid ongoing uncertainty, we’ll remain by the side of businesses in the North West. That’s why we have pledged to lend £1.3billion to them during 2019 to help them achieve their ambitions.”

Across the region, a net balance of 20 per cent of businesses said they felt that the UK’s exit from the European Union was having a negative impact on their expectations for business activity, up from 17 per cent last month.

The UK’s regions

Businesses in the South West were the most confident, at 29 per cent, ahead of the East Midlands (26 per cent) and West Midlands (19 per cent).

Those in Scotland were the least confident, with an overall confidence of zero per cent, 13 points below the national average.

Sector snapshot

Manufacturing was the most upbeat sector, with overall confidence rising nine points to 19 per cent and overtaking retail, which fell five points to 17 per cent. Overall confidence among services businesses was unchanged at 12 per cent, but construction dropped 11 points to six, the sector’s lowest reading in more than 18 months.

Hann-Ju Ho, Senior Economist, Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “It is promising to see national confidence levels continuing to beat the dip seen in February despite business confidence remaining below the long-term average and overall business confidence remaining unchanged this month.

“Coupled with this, employment expectations still remain largely unchanged from last month, with only one-third of firms planning to increase their staff levels, compared with more than 40 per cent of firms last year, suggesting cautious business behaviour in the current economic environment.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tim Roth .