Customer demand a rising concern for firms

BUSINESSES in Wales has reported a marked slowdown in exports and profits growth over the past year.

New research from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England Wales (IACEW) for the third quarter of this year also shows them experiencing issues with customer demand and marketplace competition.

The professional chartered accountancy body has released its quarterly ICAEW Business Confidence Monitor report after talking to accountants in Wales to find out how confident they are about the performances of their businesses and the challenges they are facing.

This shows business confidence in Wales remains firmly negative for the fourth successive quarter, at minus 20.9 and below the UK average of minus 10.3. ICAEW said negative sentiment was being driven by Brexit uncertainty.

Demand is also a rising concern for companies in Wales. In Q3 Welsh businesses reported concerns over marketplace competition (42%) and customer demand (37%), up from 37% and 23% a year ago.

Labour market challenges are also apparent for businesses in Wales. The proportion of companies citing issues with the availability of management (30%) and non-management (34%) skills are both up from a year ago, possibly reflecting a fall in the unemployment rate in Wales to 3.9% in the three months to June.

Martin Warren, ICAEW regional director for Wales, said:“Businesses have told us that demand is an increasing problem for them.”