Business confidence across the world dropped to five-year
low in October, according to Markit Global Business Outlook Survey.
The number of firms that expect business activity to
be higher in the year ahead exceeded those that expected a decline by about
28%, the survey said.
Hiring and investment plans also dipped to post
financial crisis lows as clouds are gathering over the global economic outlook,
presenting the darkest picture seen since the global financial crisis,
according to the survey.
The survey report said the decline in optimism among
businesses was due to a growing list of worries. Fears of a renewed downturn in
the eurozone, the prospect of higher interest rates in the UK and US next year,
along with geo-political risks from crises in Ukraine and the Middle East have
all dented business confidence across the globe.
On the bright side, UK companies were the most
upbeat about the year ahead out of all the major countries surveyed in October.
That comes despite future business activity levels at its lowest since June
2013 for both the manufacturing and services sectors.
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