Business confidence on the rise

IRISH businesses’ confidence that they will recruit extra workers in the coming months is growing, separate surveys to be released today indicate.

And Ireland’s attractiveness as a location for foreign direct investment (FDI) from the US continues to improve with research from law firm Matheson Ormsby Prentice showing that Ireland’s tax regime is seen as an important advantage over other potential FDI destinations in Europe.

The Regus fifth global Business Tracker report published today indicates that Irish optimism has risen by nearly a third (31%) over the last six months, matched by resurgent company performances bringing Ireland back into line with the world’s leading economies.

Ireland has seen business confidence rise a full 24 points since April to stand at 101, which places it above Britain (89) and the US (90) but still behind the global average of 114.

“As an indicator of the changing structure of Ireland’s employment market, 49% of firms intend to hire more freelance staff in 2011/12 and 38% will employ more remote workers. This is a clear signal that firms are seeking to invest in flexible strategies that drive growth,” the Regus report authors state.

The Small Firms Association (SFA) Q3 2011 Jobs Sentiment Survey published today found: 20% of firms expect to recruit permanent staff in the next three months; 58% expect employee numbers to remain at current levels; 26% of firms will increase employee numbers in 2012.

However, the SFA survey found that in the next three months, one in ten companies expect to introduce short term working arrangements, broadly in line with last year’s 9%. Just 3% expect to implement compulsory redundancies before year end, a decrease of 10% on this time two years ago.

The latest of the MOP FDI Index, shows 40% of the senior US business leaders surveyed perceive Ireland as a good place to do business, with the report also endorsing government initiatives and the way in which the FG/Labour administration is handling the economic crisis.

While the survey indicates that Ireland’s low corporation tax is key, factors such as Ireland’s pool of skilled labour (34% positive ranking vs 30% for Western Europe), the quality of IT infrastructure (36% vs 31%) and the stable regulatory environment (58% vs 34%), all remain as strong positive attributes when Ireland is compared to its European neighbours.