Published on the 17/05/2011 | Written by Newsdesk
According to a nationwide survey, Kiwi business owners are not expecting much, if any, of an economic recovery from the Rugby World Cup…
The latest MYOB Business Monitor, which surveys over 1000 New Zealand business owners, shows that less than a quarter of businesses (23%) expect the economy to recover in the next 12 months, with just 5% expecting to see recovery in the next 6 months.
Julian Smith, general manager of MYOB, says the sentiment of businesses reflects just how long the nation’s business owners have struggled with the effects of the recession, and how fragile are any signs of recovery.
“Going into our latest round of research, we expected to see some more confidence arising from the Rugby World Cup and its forecast economic benefits.
“However, despite some more encouraging performance data, including a slight improvement in revenue and a definite rise in pipeline work, the slumping confidence reflects just how hard Kiwi business owners have been finding the challenging conditions over an extended period.”
Despite growing pessimism however, pipeline work has improved, with a third (31%) of businesses reporting more work or sales in the next quarter – up from 26% at the end of 2010.
Mr Smith says the greatest assistance business owners could get would be from the Government focusing on making it easier to do business in New Zealand.
“[T]hree quarters of all Kiwi business owners would vote for any political party that is committed to simplifying provisional tax rules and processes,” he says.
“So if we could see one thing in this election year that would give businesses a welcome shot in the arm, it’s not the Rugby World Cup, it would be a commitment on the part of the Government to make it more simple and effective to do business in New Zealand.”
