Partner Article

Finance directors prepare for difficult 12 months

A Newcastle-based business expert has predicted a slow recovery for the local economy following the release of new data concerning the confidence levels of finance directors across the North of England.

The report from business advisory firm, Baker Tilly, has revealed that finance directors are bracing themselves for another tough 12 months, with the majority expecting to see no improvements to trading conditions between now and the end of September 2010.

The latest twice-yearly survey of mid-sized UK corporates shows that 32% of businesses across the region expect conditions to remain the same over the next 12 months, while 48% believe things will become more difficult.

The survey also found that 44% of firms have made redundancies in the 12 months to September 2009 and one third said they were reducing recruitment or putting it on hold.

Despite these major concerns however, the survey revealed some optimism amongst the company CFOs. Many CFOs see opportunities for growth citing expansion into new geographic markets (24%) as the key drivers.

James Meakin, managing partner for Baker Tillly in Newcastle, said: “Despite some positive signs of a slow recovery, times will remain tough for business over the next year and CFOs need to remain ever-vigilant and keep control over costs and management of working capital.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .