This latest Business Monitor covers the following three-month period – that is, Q3 2019 – providing a more up-to-date picture of activity in the Scottish economy.
It shows that Scottish businesses have remained relatively resilient, with growth continuing through the summer.
But longer-term prospects continue to be hampered by uncertainty. Business investment in Scotland has fallen by over 4% over the last year and has now declined for three consecutive quarters. This survey suggests little improvement.
At the same time, rising costs – in part driven by the continued weak value of Sterling – are putting pressure on cash-flow and future planning.
Recent Scottish Government survey work suggests that such trends are feeding through to the wider economy, with consumers less confident about the outlook than in the past.
Authors
The Fraser of Allander Institute (FAI) is a leading economy research institute based in the Department of Economics at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow.