A study of 1,000 UK accountants has revealed that manufacturers in the north-east of England are experiencing the country's strongest economic growth.
The report, commissioned by independent Invoice and Asset Based Lender Venture Finance, has revealed how manufacturing is performing across the UK’s different regions in the current economic climate.
The accountants were asked to rate the extent to which their manufacturing clients are under financial pressure. With a scale of one for the most financial pressure, and five for the least, the north-east of England rated 2.66 followed by the north-central with 2.56.
This positive outcome for the North East is given greater context with reference to other survey results: approaching half of North East accountants (45%) felt that the majority of their current client base could survive for up to two more years in an unchanged climate, compared with only nine per cent in the South West.
Greater prudence may have helped consolidate the North East’s position: over a fifth (21%) of North East businesses are making financial forecasts on a monthly basis, compared with 37% making only six-monthly forecasts in the South West. In addition, 80% of accountants in the North East reported an increase in clients seeking out services such as Bad Debt Protection to shield themselves against customer default.
