ECONOMIC activity is at a five-month high across the North West and the region recorded the best employment conditions throughout all 12 UK regional development areas.
The latest Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) of the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) revealed that the Northwest Development Agency (NWDA) lies sixth of the 12 RDAs for increasing business activity during December, compared with November.
London leads the way, followed by the North-East, South-East, East and East Midlands.
But the North West’s rate of improvement is shown to be the third best across the UK, only trailing London and the West Midlands.
And while every other region, including Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, recorded a continuation of job shedding among employers in December, the North-West saw numbers unchanged, after 19 months of reduction.
NWDA chief executive Steven Broomhead said: “The latest PMI data reinforce emerging signs that the north-west economy continues to move towards recovery with evidence of further expansions in output and new business in the region.
“The survey shows December ended a 19-month period of employment contraction, providing Šadditional encouragement for the regional economy.”
The PMI figures are specifically produced to provide economic analysts, purchasing professionals, business decision-makers and policy makers with accurate and timely data to help better understand business conditions across the UK’s regions.
They are compiled by independent financial data compiler Markit.
The average December business activity index – or output – was 57.6 for England and 57.1 for the UK. The North-West achieved an index of 55.9.
However, the latest data has led to fears that cost increases are beginning to emerge in the English regions.
Markit said this was generally linked to increased fuel costs, while manufacturing companies also commented on rising raw material prices and the upward influence of the weak pound on the cost of purchases from abroad.
And the figures revealed that the highest rates of price inflation were in the East of England and the North-West.
There is also evidence that the fragile economic conditions and strong competition are making it difficult for companies to pass on the higher costs to clients, which will lead to pressures on margins.
