Nearly one in three small business owners in Wales are predicting growth between July and September, up from just 13 per cent in the previous quarter, according to the latest Business Barometer report from Novuna Business Finance.
The findings stand in contrast to the UK-wide outlook, where growth forecasts have declined for four consecutive quarters, reaching a five-year low of 26 per cent.
Jo Morris, head of insight at Novuna Business Finance, said: “This time last year, the election bounce of a new Government taking office saw an immediate rise in small business confidence – with the percentage predicting growth, nationally, rising from 30 per cent to 35 per cent.
“Ever since then, small business growth forecasts have fallen over four consecutive quarters.
“The new low of 26 per cent for the three months to 30 September is on a par with the lockdown months of 2020.
“Wales bucks the national trend this July with an upturn in the percentage of small businesses predicting growth for the next three months and work on new initiatives to support these forecasts.”
The study found that 68 per cent of Welsh business owners are actively pursuing new strategies to fuel growth.