Business confidence in the South West rose six points during October to 43 per cent, according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds.
Companies in the South West reported higher confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, up two points at 50 per cent.
When taken alongside their optimism in the economy, up eight points to 35 per cent, this gives a headline confidence reading of 43 per cent – up from 37 per cent in September.
A net balance of 44 per cent of businesses in the region also expect to increase staff levels over the next year, up 20 points on last month.
Looking ahead to the next six months, businesses in the South West identified their top target areas for growth as investing in their team, for example through training (43 per cent), evolving their offering, for instance by introducing new products or services (32 per cent) and introducing new technology, such as automation or AI (28 per cent).
Amanda Dorel, regional director for the South West at Lloyds, said: “It’s encouraging to see South West confidence rising again, and particularly good to see more businesses planning to hire – a long-term investment for growth that will benefit the region’s local communities, as well as businesses themselves.
“We’ll continue to provide our on-the-ground support to help firms capitalise on this brighter outlook and take the next steps in their growth strategies – whether those are centred on making investments in new technologies, or expanding their product ranges with new products and services.”
The Business Barometer, which surveys 1,200 businesses monthly and which has been running since 2002, provides early signals about UK economic trends both regionally and nationwide.