Business activity in Yorkshire and the Humber rose to its highest rate in eight months in March, despite inflationary pressures on firms, a survey has found.
The latest NatWest Yorkshire & Humber PMI Business Activity Index –which measures the combined output of the region’s manufacturing and service sectors – rose to 64.3 in March, up from 63.1 in February. The expansion was one of the fastest in the survey’s 25-year history, with Yorkshire and Humber joint top of the 12 recorded UK regions.
A sharp increase in demand for goods and services provided by private sector firms in Yorkshire and Humber was sustained in March, with the expansion broadly matching that seen in the previous month. Only London posted a faster increase in new orders in March, with the service sector particularly buoyant.
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Companies in the region were more upbeat than those in most other parts of the country, with investment plans, expectations of stronger demand and a continued recovery in economic activity cited as reasons to be bullish.
Richard Topliss, chair of NatWest’s North regional board, said: “Survey data was once again broadly positive for Yorkshire and Humber businesses in March, with activity levels rising at the fastest pace for nine months and accelerating further from the Omicron-induced sluggishness we saw last December and at the beginning of the year. In fact, the latest expansion was stronger than any seen prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in early-2020.
“Other positive signs were also seen regarding employment, with the rate of job creation reaching a survey high as companies showed clear intent to boost operating capacities and expand their businesses. Indeed, sentiment data reinforced this, showing a strong level of business confidence across the region.
“However, the latest data did little to allay inflation concerns as both input costs and output prices rose at faster rates in March. The rate of selling charge inflation accelerated to a survey high as firms chose to pass on surging costs to their clients.”
The survey found that private sector companies in Yorkshire and Humber increased their staffing numbers at a record rate for a second month in a row in March.
But there were also concerns over rising prices, which reached their highest levels in the history of the survey.
