The Heart of the South West produces a regular Business Bulletin, which provides a comprehensive summary of business sentiment across the Heart of the South West, as well as showing the national context. Thanks to the support of business organisations, the Bulletin conveys the views of over 25,000 businesses within Heart of the South West.
“Welcome to the summer edition of our business bulletin digest. The latest evidence is showing that over the last few months growth has shown tentative signs of moving in a positive direction though the picture differs across sectors, the economy remains smaller than it was before the pandemic and is not expected to return to pre-pandemic level until mid-2024. Energy prices seem to have peaked but remain high so we have now had over 3 years where the economy has effectively stagnated or fallen. In historical terms that is by any definition a major derailment; growth projections are anaemic at best and while inflation is falling, the costs of borrowing continue to increase as does pressure on disposable income. The prospects for investment in the short term are not healthy to say the least, levels of equity investment have fallen off a cliff since early 2022 and the Bank of England is not forecasting an increase in business investment until 2025. So it seems this lacklustre performance will continue for the next 12-18 months and there still remains no clear, coherent national plan or strategy for investing in the industries and growth sectors of the future. The overall economic situation is fragile and major vulnerabilities remain.”
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