Survey results from Falkirk Business Panel Conference November 2008 (PDF, 204KB)|
Falkirk Business Survey, August 2008
Falkirk Council conducted a business confidence survey of Falkirk Business Panel members in August 2008.
Businesses were asked (a) how Sales, Employment and Investment had changed over the past year and (b) how they expected these factors to change next year.
Responses were received from 48 businesses and a summary of findings is shown in the tables below.
Business Performance This Year Compared With Last Year
|
|
Higher
|
Lower
|
Same
|
Not Known
|
Total
|
|
SALES
|
46%
|
42%
|
12%
|
-
|
100%
|
|
EMPLOYMENT
|
35%
|
19%
|
42%
|
4%
|
100%
|
|
INVESTMENT
|
42%
|
23%
|
31%
|
4%
|
100%
|
Outlook For Next Year Compared With This Year
|
|
Higher
|
Lower
|
Same
|
Not Known
|
Total
|
|
SALES
|
46%
|
42%
|
12%
|
-
|
100%
|
|
EMPLOYMENT
|
35%
|
19%
|
42%
|
4%
|
100%
|
|
INVESTMENT
|
42%
|
23%
|
31%
|
4%
|
100%
|
The principal conclusions of the survey are as follows.
-
SALES – More businesses expect to increase Sales next year than last year. Put another way, 42% saw Sales fall last year but only 17% expect Sales to fall next year. This positive outlook for Sales indicates a welcome but perhaps unexpected degree of optimism.
-
EMPLOYMENT – Fewer businesses expect to increase Employment next year than did so last year. However, the majority (65%) expect Employment to remain the same. Only 15% expect Employment to be lower. 19% expect Employment to be higher.
-
INVESTMENT – Fewer businesses expect to increase Investment next year than did so last year. More businesses expect Investment to fall next year. Of the three factors, businesses seem least positive about Investment. However, 67% of businesses still expect Investment to increase or stay the same.
-
Overall, the results suggest the businesses surveyed are relatively confident about their prospects next year and are not preparing for a sharp downturn. However, caution in seeing the results as being indicative of the local economy is required owing to (a) the relatively small number of businesses in the survey and (b) volatility/negativity in the international financial situation since the survey was conducted. Many forecasters expect Scotland to avoid a recession next year, but the economic situation may still have disruptive effects locally on particular businesses and sectors and on employment.
Falkirk Council thanks businesses for taking part in the survey and hopes the results will be of interest to them and the wider business community.
For further information on the survey, please contact ian.white@falkirk.gov.uk|.