Business confidence in the West Midlands has fallen further as companies battling rising costs and a tough labour market fear a difficult year ahead, a survey of the region's chartered accountants has found.
ICAEW’s Business Confidence Monitor for the West Midlands for Q4 was published today - and ranked confidence in the region at -19.9, down from the previous quarter and below the national average of -16.9.
The ICAEW said that despite a strong sales performance, tough economic conditions and ongoing political turmoil helped drive confidence levels down. The body is now calling on the Government to help restore confidence in this week's Autumn Statement.