West Midlands companies welcomed a further expansion in new business intakes with another round of job creation and output growth, according to newly published research. Input cost inflation softened in April but demand resilience facilitated a sharper increase in output charges.
The latest NatWest PMI report, a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-month change in the combined output of the region's manufacturing and service sectors, rose fractionally from 52.7 in March to 52.8 in April, signalling a solid rate of growth.
Anecdotal evidence linked the latest upturn to greater client spending, successful marketing efforts, new business wins, improved consumer footfall and acquisitions. That said, the overall rate of increase in local output was below the national average.
