Norfolk Chamber’s regular working lunch with the Bank of England was held at the Chamber offices today. Tim Pike, the Agent for the Bank of England in the South East was looking to hear from Norfolk businesses on: whether they were investing and recruiting for their organisations; feeling pressure over wage increases; and what their confidence levels were going forward.
Many members highlighted that they were fairly optimistic and had reasonable levels of confidence, however they were still slightly cautious over the possible outcome of the General Election. Those working in the construction sector highlighted that they were very busy, however they were experiencing shortages of bricks and other construction materials, as well as skilled labour. It was noted that large construction projects in the Cambridge area may eventually have an impact on the construction market in Norfolk, as more skilled workers migrated towards possible higher earning potential in Cambridge.
Several businesses expressed concern regarding the oil and gas sector and noted that many organisations both locally and nationally were consolidating their positions in response to the lower oil prices. It was also highlighted that those companies dealing with Russia were seeing a number of contracts being cancelled due to the escalating situation in that region.
The service sector members outlined that they were seeing growth in disposable income spending, such as travel and leisure items. Car sales were also increasing, as outlined in the recent Norwich Economic Barometer report, which showed that more cars were registered in March 2015 than in any other month in the previous 16 years.
Those in the IT sector reported that their levels of optimism had been rising over the last couple of quarters, as more Norfolk businesses were investing in much needed IT equipment. Recruiting skilled staff remained an issue and the salary levels of high quality staff had seen significant increases to ensure they remained in post.
