Provincial confidence soars

Businesses in northern provincial centres are bubbling with confidence and are considerably more confident than Auckland companies, according to a survey.

The Northern Region Chambers of Commerce surveyed 426 businesses in the top half of the North Island over the past fortnight and found a net 28 per cent are optimistic about business conditions over the next six months.

That represents a huge bounce back from the net 26 per cent who were pessimistic in April and a marked improvement on the net 10 per cent who were optimistic in June.

It is also markedly more confident than a similar survey of chamber members in Auckland who reported a net optimism of just 3 per cent.

The drop in rural incomes, due mainly to the rise in the dollar, has not stopped regional firms being even more optimistic about their own businesses. A net 60 per cent now think their own businesses will do even better over the next six months.

That, too, is a higher level of confidence than in Auckland where a net 41 per cent were looking to better times.

Confidence is highest in Cambridge (where a net 73 per cent of respondents expect their businesses to improve), Tauranga (71), Eastern Bay of Plenty (67) and Gisborne (58).

It was lowest in Taupo (where there was still a net optimism of 36 per cent) and Northland (51).