Businesses in Greater Birmingham are more upbeat about the prospect of growing their workforce following a long period of recruitment struggles, according to a new economic report.
Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce's latest Quarterly Business Report indicates a buoyant start to 2024 for many of the region's firms, with positive trends in recruitment, domestic sales and price stability.
The Q1 report reveals the number of firms which attempted to recruit over the last quarter grew by two per cent, while those experiencing recruitment difficulties fell significantly from 72 per cent to 63 per cent - the lowest figure since Q3 2021.
And recruitment confidence across all sectors is showing tentative signs of improvement, with 39 per cent of businesses anticipating that their workforce will increase over the next three months.
Sign up for your free West Midlands newsletter and follow us on LinkedIn
Email newsletters
BusinessLive is your home for business news from across the West Midlands including Birmingham, the Black Country, Solihull, Coventry and Staffordshire.
Click through here to sign up for our email newsletter and also view the broad range of other bulletins we offer including weekly sector-specific updates.
We will also send out 'Breaking News' emails for any stories which must be seen right away.
For all the latest stories, views and polls, follow our
Meanwhile, 45 per cent of businesses reported an uptick in domestic sales and domestic orders - both up five per cent from the previous quarter.
The figures firmly indicate an upward trend in improved 海角视频 sales volumes, after a dramatic slump from 50 per cent to 39 per cent between Q2 and Q3 last year.
In comparison, however, export sales have remained tepid, with the number of businesses reporting an increase in export sales growth staying at the same level as Q4 2023 (28 per cent).
Most Read
Henrietta Brealey, chief executive of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, said: "The start of 2024 has brought emerging signs of improved business confidence in recruitment, domestic sales and price stability, despite the challenges that remain regarding investment and exporting.
"Signs of progress have continued with domestic sales and orders given that the number of businesses reporting an increase in their 海角视频 business activity is now greater than the number of those reporting that it had stabilised - reversing a trend of multiple consecutive quarters.
"While showing signs of recovery from a sudden slump in mid-2023, export growth lags behind domestic growth.
"This highlights the difficulties faced by businesses trading internationally, especially contending with a complex international commercial and political environment such as disruption in the red sea and geopolitical instability in the Middle East on top of domestic macroeconomic challenges.
"Looking at the wider landscape of business confidence, slightly more businesses than last quarter expect prices to stabilise than to increase which coincides with the slight drop in inflation concerns compared with the latter half of 2023.
"Most significantly, there has been a notable improvement in the recruitment landscape this quarter although overcoming difficulties accessing talent remains high on businesses' priority list and price pressures remain high."