DACC Release Results of the Chamber Quarterly Economic Indicator

On Tuesday 29 September Dundee & Angus Chamber of Commerce (DACC), along with Angus Economics, hosted a webinar where they released the results of the Chamber Quarterly Economic Indicator (QEI) for Q3 2020.

The survey highlighted that:

• Covid-19 has forced 38% of local businesses to make changes to the products & services they offer
• Average operating capacity in Dundee & Angus businesses has improved from 54% to 69% quarter on quarter
• Over the last 3 months businesses are significantly more concerned about taxation and exchange rates
• 47% of businesses expect prospects to improve over next 12 months, but 7% concerned they may not survive
Alison Henderson, CEO of Dundee & Angus Chamber said "This second publication of the Dundee & Angus Chamber Economic Indicator Report sees us reveal our DACC Business Sentiment Indicator, a measure of current business conditions and expectations for the future.

We’ve had a very positive level of responses again this quarter and encouragingly, many businesses are reporting strong order books which is lifting future expectations. We know that positive expectations then encourage businesses to invest – that’s vital for stimulating and supporting our local economy.

But let’s be clear, there is fragility in our economies at the moment, and we can see in our Indicator that when businesses lack information and clear guidance, that shakes confidence and expectations. In turn, that dampens sentiment, and behaviours change.

We need to see further business support measures to alleviate difficult trading conditions caused by the pandemic and a clear route through Brexit, with progress on trade deals. Businesses have not been able to use 2020 to plan for the UK’s exit from the EU and time is not on our side.

However, we can see from responses to the last two surveys that businesses can and will adapt quickly, and those who do so report considerable benefits to their revenues. Making informed decisions is the key.

As the trend in our data shows, business sentiment remains relatively positive as we go through the second half of 2020: protecting job losses and supporting businesses remain critical priorities.”

Dr Shona Dobbie, Angus Economics commented “Being able to create our own business sentiment index is a huge step forward as it provides a wealth of information about the conditions local businesses are actually facing and their expectations for the next few months. The information used in calculating the index lets us see not only what is going well but also where the pinch points are at any point in time, and this gives us the ability to be much more pro-active.”

You can download the full report here https://www.dundeeandanguschamber.co.uk/cms/DACC%20Q3%20Quarterly%20Economic%20Indicator.pdf and watch back the recording of the webinar over on our YouTube Channel.

Media Contact
Sarah Young
Events & Marketing Manager
Sarahyoung@dundeeandanguschamber.co.uk

Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce
Unit 37 City Quay
Camperdown Street
Dundee
DD1 3JA

We are the leading business membership organisation in Dundee & Angus and part of the worldwide long-established Chamber of Commerce brand. We have over 800 business members who between them employ over 75,000 people. We work hard to help provide members with the business connections and opportunities they need to flourish.
We represent our members’ views and use our collective voice to influence opinion makers. We are passionate about Dundee and Angus and promote it as a world class destination, helping the local us Ines community to thrive.

This release was published on openPR.