British business confidence drops to a 26-month low
BUSINESS confidence has collapsed to its lowest since June 2009, the latest BDO survey says today.
The measure of short-term turnover expectations dropped to 93.6 in August, a 26-month low. Scores above 95 indicate growth.
The index was also below the 95 mark at the end of last year, when separate figures from the Office for National Statistics claimed that the economy contracted by 0.5 per cent on the quarter.
Yet companies are less downbeat about prospects two quarters ahead, according to the survey, “suggesting that negative growth [in turnover] is likely to be short-lived.”
The forward-looking optimism index came in at 95.5, foreseeing marginal growth for the beginning of next year.
The index has been “teetering around the 95 point for three consecutive months,” the business group said.