Positive outlook from Aim-listed companies for the coming year
CONFIDENCE among Aim-listed companies has increased, with nearly nine in 10 reporting a positive outlook for their own business over the next 12 months, a survey of 142 companies has found.
This compares favourably with 2008, when only 51 per cent of those polled were as confident. Financial services group Smith and Williamson, which conducted the survey, claimed that a number of companies are now taking steps that indicate the beginning of green shoots in the economy.
Over a third of respondents said they were recruiting more staff, whereas last year over half were considering making redundancies.
Meanwhile, the number of companies considering a transfer to the Full List almost doubled from 11 per cent to 20 per cent. Just six per cent said they felt that they might have to delist, compared with 15 per cent last year.