Business confidence in Yorkshire fell 18 points during April to 34%, according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds.
Companies in Yorkshire reported lower confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, down eight points to 45%, and lower confidence in the economy – down 27 points to 23%. Taken together, this gives a headline confidence reading of 34% (vs. 52% in March).
Looking ahead to the next six months, Yorkshire businesses identified their top target areas for growth as investing in their team, for example through training (43%), introducing new technology (36%) and evolving their offering, for example by introducing new products and services (33%).
The Business Barometer, which surveys 1,200 businesses monthly and which has been running since 2002, provides early signals about UK economic trends both regionally and nationwide.
National picture
Overall, UK business confidence fell ten points in April to 39%.
Firms’ optimism in their own trading prospects dropped seven points to 50%, while their confidence in the wider economy fell 13 points to 28%.
The North East was the most confident UK nation or region in April (59%), followed by the West Midlands (53%) and the North West (52%).
Sector insights
Confidence fell across the four broad sectors. Manufacturing confidence remained broadly unchanged from last month, falling by one point to 38%, while the construction sector saw the largest decrease in business confidence this month, declining 22 points to 26%. Retail confidence also fell by 13 points down to 45% and the service industry fell seven points to 40%, both now at three-month lows.
Martyn Kendrick, regional director for Yorkshire and the Humber at Lloyds, said: “Despite an overall dip in the region’s business confidence this month, it’s encouraging to see that firms are still setting out plans to drive further growth, including investing in their own teams and introducing new technology.
“We’ll continue to work with local businesses through our on-the-ground teams to support their ambitions, providing resources, insight and funding to help them succeed.”
