West Midlands most confident region outside of London

West Midlands businesses have started 2019 on a positive footing with confidence rising four points and more firms expecting to hire additional staff this year.

According to the latest Business Barometer by Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, companies in the West Midlands report higher confidence in their business prospects, which rose two points to 37 per cent, and higher economic optimism, which was up four points at 24 per cent.

This gives an overall confidence reading of 31 per cent, rising twice as quickly as the national average and placing the West Midlands as the UK’s most confident region outside London.

The uplift is reflected in businesses’ hiring intentions, with a net balance of 25 per cent of local firms expecting to hire more staff during the next year, up nine points on last month.

Across the UK, overall confidence rose two points to 19 per cent as firms’ optimism about the economy climbed three points to 10 per cent. Companies’ confidence in their own prospects edged up one point to 27 per cent.

In the West Midlands, a net balance of 14 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, down eight points on a month ago.

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

Amanda Dorel, regional director for the West Midlands at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “As the most confident region outside the capital, West Midlands businesses are knuckling down to deliver growth amid challenging circumstances.

“This is certainly reflected in their hiring intentions and we will continue to stand by the side of businesses as they look to create new jobs this year.”

Hann-Ju Ho, senior economist, Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, added: “Despite businesses ending 2018 on a low, it’s good to see that, across the UK as a whole, they’ve started the year on a slightly more positive footing.

“The results for the manufacturing and construction sectors are particularly encouraging and we hope the picture will improve further as we move into February and beyond, if geopolitical uncertainties subside.”