Survey shows business confidence up yet again

Confidence among Auckland businesses has improved for the third quarter in a row, shows a survey by the Auckland Chamber of Commerce.

Some 40 per cent of firms expect business conditions will get worse in the coming six months. Three months ago, 49 per cent of firms were expecting confidence to worsen.

On the optimistic side of the ledger, 12 per cent of businesses expect conditions to improve, up from 8 per cent three months ago.

"This is good news and contrasts sharply with the negative talk that is persisting in certain quarters," said Auckland Chamber of Commerce chief executive Michael Barnett.

"The evidence shows that an increasing number of businesses have decided to put negativity to one side and are taking their own decisions to move forward."

Firms' confidence in their own prospects has also improved, but only slightly.

Some 41 per cent expect conditions in their own businesses will improve, up from 40 per cent three months ago.

In the latest survey 18 per cent of firms expected their own business to deteriorate, down from 21 per cent three months ago.

Barnett said the result showing a rising level of optimism suggests earlier conjecture about the economy dipping towards a recession or a hard landing was premature.

The survey, done on Monday to Wednesday last week, came just before data showing NZ's economy bounced back from a small contraction at the end of last year to grow 0.7 per cent in the first three months of this year.

But economists said they expected gross domestic product growth to be slow in the remainder of the year.

Growing optimism

* 40 per cent of Auckland firms expect conditions to worsen.

* Three months ago 49 per cent expected worse conditions.

* 41 per cent of firms expect their own business to pick up, compared with 40 per cent three months ago.