More confidence in region

Business confidence in the Caribbean has increased.
That’s according to the latest edition of what is said to be the world’s largest regular economic survey of finance professionals.
In their Global Economic Conditions Survey for the second quarter, ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and IMA (the Institute of Management Accountants) showed 23 per cent of respondents reporting confidence gains, up from 14 per cent in the previous quarter, with 29 per cent – 10 per cent less than the previous quarter -reporting a loss of confidence.
The organisations found that “the rise in business confidence has mostly been down to improving cash flow and demand, which became significantly stronger in the latest quarter”.
“These are now at their healthiest in two years, while prices and exchange rates stabilised slightly and business opportunities remained resilient after falling for nine consecutive months.”
Reacting to the findings, ACCA senior economic analyst Manos Schizas said: “Looking forward, the macro-economic outlook for Caribbean economies has improved slightly, although it remains far from upbeat.”
The research found that “45 per cent of respondents in the Caribbean are now optimistic about the shape of their national economies, up from 42 per cent previously, while the pessimists make up 52 per cent of the sample, down from 53 per cent previously”.
“Access to growth capital rebounded slightly in the second quarter, even though it remains subdued after more than year or slow decline, and opportunities for growth remained very rare. As a result, business capacity building rebounded in the second quarter of 2014.”