Business confidence reaches highest level since March despite ongoing uncertainty over Brexit and incoming president Trump
Comes as separate report says consumer confidence is 'pretty robust' given the tumultuous year
BUSINESS confidence has reached its highest level since March despite ongoing uncertainty over Brexit and the incoming US president Donald Trump.
It rose by seven points to 39% in December, according to Lloyds Bank's business barometer, driven by a 16-point jump in economic optimism to 30%.
Hann-Ju Ho, senior economist at Lloyds, said: "Although significant uncertainties lie ahead, for now, economic optimism in our December survey has recovered near to levels seen at the start of the year.
"In addition, confidence this year has held up much better than it did during the global financial crisis."
While business confidence is on the rise, hiring intentions dropped to their lowest level since February, with the net balance of firms looking to bolster their workforces dropping two points to 22%.
Companies' business prospects slipped three points to 47%, but confidence in consumer services, including retail, hit its highest level since March after clocking up a one-point rise to 37%.
Britain's economy is expected to grow by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, down from 0.5% in the previous three months, according to the Bank of England.
RELATED STORIES:
It comes as a separate report says consumer confidence is "pretty robust" given the tumultuous year - but the creep of inflation is starting to be seen the general economy and shoppers' wallets.
Confidence fell by one point in December to 108.1, its lowest level since July in the immediate aftermath of the EU referendum, the latest data from YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) shows.
Each of the eight individual metrics covering household finances, property prices, job security and business activity that comprise the index fell, the first time this has happened since the month following the Brexit vote.
But Stephen Harmston, head of YouGov Reports, said it is still “a pretty robust performance given the tumult of the past 12 months”.
Cebr director Scott Corfe said: "The tail end of the year has seen steady house prices, a low unemployment rate, and solid consumer spending.
"While this performance defies many doom-mongers, the slow creep of inflation is starting to be both seen in the economy at large and felt in consumers' wallets throughout the country.”