The number of Scottish businesses that expect improved trading in the next year has gone up, with more than half limbering up for a recruitment drive, accountancy firm Grant Thornton says.
The company’s latest International Business Report indicates that 73.9% of Scottish private sector businesses surveyed in February 2015 are looking forward to an increase in turnover over the next 12 months, up from 64% a year ago.
The number of companies planning to hire more staff rose to 54.3% from 44% this time last year, according to the report, which was compiled from interviews with more than 2,500 senior managers.
Just 2.2% of respondents were pessimistic about the future, compared to 10% a year ago.
Meanwhile, there was a slight quarterly increase in the number of businesses expecting to raise exports, up from 20.4% to 21.7%.
Kevin Engel, managing partner for Grant Thornton in Scotland, said: “The underlying performance of the Scottish business community is strong and there are clearly opportunities for growth, not least via export markets.
“Many companies are making big decisions about their future and this kind of data helps to inform investment strategies. We should expect the private sector to continue this upward trajectory and that should have a knock-on effect in the labour market.”