EEDA - East of England Development Agency

Building on business confidence

27 August 2010

Construction industry rebounds shows latest economic report

Record numbers of businesses feel much more positive compared to the first three months of the year the latest report from the economic intelligence unit at the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) shows.

Published today, Insight East’s Quarterly Economic Brief (QEB) covers the period from April to June 2010. It summarises data and reports from other national and regional organisations in an easily accessible and concise format.

Highlights of the report include:

• the construction industry experiencing the most impressive rebound compared to the first three months of the year
• business services and finance sectors sustaining their recovery into the second quarter of the year
• companies, especially manufacturers, across the region remaining confident about the economic conditions - a record 12 per cent say they are ‘much more’ confident about the future
• businesses in the East of England are also the most positive about their expectations for profits and sales in the coming year compared to all other UK regions
• the region in second place after the South East in terms of turnover
• financial pressures on businesses continuing to improve and access to finance easing.

Public expenditure cuts in the future may affect this growth and confidence could be dented, the report warns, although unemployment is likely to rise at a slower rate than earlier predictions.

The QEB shows that the export market continues to boost the economy. Manufacturing businesses in the region have seen a dramatic improvement in exports, far outstripping national figures. IT continues to expect substantial growth while health and education is the most optimistic about the future.

Glenn Athey, director of Insight East said:

“Our latest economic intelligence report shows that the economy of the East of England, in line with the rest of the UK, has continued to recover strongly with access to finance for business easing with inflation and pay levels remaining low.

“Businesses in the region are bullish about future growth, and confidence about economic conditions is becoming more embedded which is good news.

“Cuts in public funding could dent this confidence but building expertise, capacity and knowledge will help businesses to take advantage of growing overseas markets. Increased investment in research and development will also help firms maintain their competitive edge, although our research shows protection of intellectual property will become a bigger priority for firms in the future.”

The report is available at www.insighteast.org.uk

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