UK businesses dramatically scaled back or shelved investment plans

• Businesses have dramatically scaled back investment plans for the rest of the year in response to the uncertainty surrounding the future of the UK economy, according to a leading business survey.
• The Institute of Directors (IoD) said its confidence tracker revealed the Covid-19 crisis had driven down investment intentions among its members for the next 12 months by 11 percentage points to a record low of -43%.
• The monthly survey found investment and hiring intentions “plumbed new depths” last month despite some easing of the lockdown and an improvement in the overall confidence business owners have in the economy, which increased from -69% in April to -60%.
• Tej Parikh, the IoD’s chief economist, said firms were more optimistic about their own recovery than the broader economic situation, though it was too early to say whether the small and medium-sized businesses that make up the bulk of the IoD’s membership had turned a corner.

 

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