As Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer gets set to deliver his speech to the Labour Conference in Liverpool a new survey shows confidence plummeting among North West firms. Tony McDonough reports
Business confidence in the North West plummeted in September, according to a new study.
As Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer gets set to deliver his speech to the Labour Conference in Liverpool the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds paints a gloomy economic picture for Liverpool city region and the wider North West.
Companies in the region reported lower confidence in their own prospects month-on-month, down nine points at 44%. Alongside their optimism in the economy, down 31 points to 9%, this gives a headline confidence reading of 27% (vs 47% in August).
This will be bad timing for the Prime Minister who will attempt to convince the country, and members of his own party, that the Government will deliver on its promises to transform the UK economy.
At the weekend the Government delivered a piece of bad news for Liverpool city region when it was revealed plans for a 10,000-home new town between Liverpool and Bootle will not get the backing of Whitehall.
However, there was one piece of good news for Merseyside. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has offered £20m to repair and restore Southport Pier which has been closed to the public since December 2022.
Lloyds said that for the next six months, North West businesses identified their top target areas for growth as introducing new technology (44%), evolving their offering, for example through new products or services (34%), and investing in their teams.
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. Overall, UK business confidence fell 12 points in September to 42%.
Jenny France, area director for the North West at Lloyds, said: “Despite a fall in confidence, North West firms continue to display their characteristic resilience and innovation by identifying new pathways to growth.”
Hann-Ju Ho, senior economist at Lloyds Commercial Banking, added: “While increased market volatility earlier in the month may have impacted confidence, levels of trading prospects and economic optimism remain above their long-term averages.
“Businesses may find reassurance that the Bank of England is expected to reduce interest rates further in the next six months, while long-term global bond yields have calmed which, if sustained, may have a positive impact on businesses.”