Region's businesses most stable in the UK, says report
Businesses in the West Midlands have experienced the most consistent level of performance in the UK over the last 12 months. According to the Bibby Financial Services’ Business Factors Index, just 17 per cent of the region’s businesses said they experienced a drop in trading conditions over the past year.
The financial services report is a quarterly survey which tracks turnover levels and the outlook of small business owners and managers across the UK.
Just over half of firms (52 per cent) reported that their business was performing at a similar level to a year ago, with only 17 per cent seeing trading conditions decline.
However, the region’s public sector “does not show much optimism” with regard to a full recovery, said Bibby. The survey suggests that they are among the least hopeful about an economic revival, with 57 per cent predicting that real signs of improvement will not appear for at least two years or more.
Only four per cent of businesses reported that conditions were “tough”, and 30 per cent said their business is performing better than a year ago. However, nearly three quarters of respondents (70 per cent) have had to cut costs to prepare their business for further economic challenges.
David Webb, Bibby Financial Services spokesman for the West Midlands, said: “The findings from this quarter should offer some confidence to small businesses across the region. The very small percentage of firms who have stated that conditions are tough or that their business has deteriorated over the last year shows that for the majority conditions have stabilised.
“The key issue now is how the Comprehensive Spending Review will impact on the confidence and success of firms across the region. The private sector will be forced to counterbalance the heavy job losses in the public sector and drive economic growth. A recent study by Kingston University has shown that companies in the Midlands plan to generate the highest number of new private sector jobs over the next year.
"These support official statistics that show employment in the West Midlands rose by 26,000 in the last quarter, highlighting that the region is recovering in the aftermath of the recession more quickly than other.”
