London firms gaining confidence despite warnings over exports dip
Businesses in London are gaining more confidence despite growing concerns around political and economic uncertainty, but the UK economy is growing unbalanced and too reliant on domestic demand, according to new research out today.
The most recent ICAEW/Grant Thornton UK Business Confidence Monitor reveals that the confidence index for London stands at 16.2, up from 15.1 in the last quarter.
According to ICAEW, one factor boosting confidence is customer demand, with just 26 per cent reporting this is more of a challenge than it was this time last year.
However, the chartered accountants group also warned that growing exports should be a “big priority” given that growth was more reliant on domestic demand over the three months to 22 April.
Export growth fell back to 2.3 per cent over the past year, while domestic sales grew by 5.3 per cent.
ICAEW’s Andrea Dunhill said: “Our economy is growing increasingly unbalanced and reliant on domestic demand. It is crucial that we look to boost our exports both inside and outside the EU.”