North and north-east businesses are starting the new week hoping for some positive signs from the Conservative Party conference in Manchester.
Sadly, they are unlikely to find too much enlightenment about what the future has in store for the economy post Brexit.
And they may also be forgiven for thinking the chances of a satisfactory Brexit deal are slimmer by the minute if Britain’s leaders cannot even agree the right direction of travel among themselves.
Economic uncertainties are not going away – Walkers Shortbread, whose iconic products are among the best known exports from these islands,
highlighted Brexit concerns in annual results reported today.
Jim Walker, the Moray firm’s joint managing director Jim Walker says Walkers currently has about 500 continental Europeans on its payroll.
How secure are their futures and what of the many thousands of non-UK nationals employed in hotels, restaurants and fish processing factories across the region? Answers on a postcard.
Britain’s economy is unlikely to see very much growth until people start spending money and retailers across the north and north-east will no doubt be taking a keen interest in first half results fro Tesco on Wednesday.
Tesco is expected to reveal a further pick-up in sales growth as its recovery gathers pace, despite the tightening squeeze on shoppers from Brexit-fuelled inflation.
The UK’s biggest supermarket is likely to report like-for-like sales growth of 2.5% for its second quarter, against 2.3% in the previous three months, according to analysts at Jefferies.
This would mark a seventh quarter in a row of positive sales momentum at Tesco as it continues to reap the rewards of offering customers lower prices in the face of rising inflation.