September 2021
Featured in this insight: Business & enterprise, Financial services
Business confidence has increased to 36%; highest figure since 2017: A recent survey by Lloyds Bank of 1,200 businesses at the start of August has found that business confidence, in the UK, has risen by 6% to 36% - the highest recorded figure since April 2017. Likewise, economic optimism rose by 6%, as well, to 38%.
When asked about wages, a third of businesses stated they expect a pay rise of at least 2%, with nearly half of companies expecting to charge higher prices in the coming months. Furthermore, 17% of employees are anticipating a wage increase of at least 3%. The increase, of 12% from when the question was last asked, is the highest since it was first asked in 2018.
The study also found a disparity in business confidence between different locations of the UK, with the North East showing the most confidence in their business (46%) - an increase of 6% since the previous survey. Just behind the North East, London was also found to have a lot of business confidence, with 41% of businesses in the capital stating their trust in their company – a rise of 4%.
On the other hand, three regions in the UK had a decrease in confidence since the last survey: the West Midlands dropped to 27%, Yorkshire and the Humber decreased to 26% with just 28% of the East Midlands stating their confidence.
Gareth Oakley, managing director for Business Banking at Lloyds Bank, said: “With further boosts to confidence in the services, manufacturing and construction sectors we can be hopeful that demand across all sectors will drive consumption throughout the rest of the year.”
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