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SA business confidence falls

Jul 28, 2015
SA businesses are predicting job losses.

SA businesses are predicting job losses.

A survey of South Australian business shows confidence is falling and most businesses expect the local economy to weaken over the next 12 months.

The Business SA Survey of Business Expectations for the June quarter showed a decline in the confidence index compared to the March quarter, when there was a modest increase.

The results, which also show declining sales and profitability, has prompted new calls for further State Government action to reduce business costs.

The business confidence index dropped by 2.6 index points to 83.2. Year-on-year business confidence is down by 5.1 index points.

General business conditions in SA fell “significantly” by 16.4 points to 72.2. This was 19.7 index points lower than the expected result forecast in March.

In addition, more than two thirds of businesses (67.1 per cent) expect the South Australian economy to weaken over the next 12 months. Only 7.1 per cent of businesses are predicting growth.

Business SA CEO Nigel McBride said it was “very concerning” that more than half of the businesses surveyed reported declines in sales/revenue in the June quarter. Almost 60 per cent reported a fall in profitability.

“The survey also showed that some 50 per cent of businesses would not be able to pass on the recent national wage increase, and as a result a significant number of businesses would be forced to decrease employees’s hours and reduce staff numbers,” McBride said.

“Declining business confidence and conditions combined with SA’s high unemployment provide a strong imperative for the State Government to act boldly to reduce the cost of doing business in SA and to incentivise business to expand and employ more people.”

 

– InDaily

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