It seems business confidence is making a comeback, enjoying a moderate increase in the first three months of the year, but the outlook is far from positive according to the National Australia Bank.
The NAB’s quarterly survey showed the business confidence index jumped seven points from -31 to -24 for the March quarter, however a negative result confirms that more companies are negative about the economy than positive.
”Clearly business is expecting further significant deterioration in economic activity,” the report said.
This was evident in the report, with business conditions for the first quarter sinking to -20 index points from -16.
Demand for products and services has also dropped off, having dire consequences for the sales and manufacturing industries in particular.
”Lack of demand is seen as the core issue,” NAB said.
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