The UK economy is predicted to grow at the fastest rate of any country in the western world, according to the UK Business Confidence Monitor (BCM) index report published by Grant Thornton.
The report is the findings from its regular monitor of business confidence, conducted with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW), and suggests that business confidence has reached a 10-year high resulting in economic growth of 1.3% in the fourth quarter of 2014, accelerating from 0.8pc in the previous three-month period.
The CBI, who will begin its annual conference begins on Monday, said the UK economy was recovering at a “slow and steady” pace. It predicts growth this year of 1.4%, up from the 1.2% forecast in August, following a strong third-quarter performance. It then expects a growth rate of 2.4% in 2014.
Established in in 2003, the survey of 1,000 accountants is one of the broadest leading indicators of how the economy is expected to perform.
“This quarter’s report shows that the UK economic recovery is well underway,” said Michael Izza, chief executive of the ICAEW. “If it continues at this rate, the UK economy will be one of the fastest growing economies in the western world going into 2014.”
The Index reached a 10-year high of 31.7 points, up from 24 points in the third quarter.
The ICAEW/Grant Thornton report says the recovery is happening among both business and consumer sectors and that companies are expecting growth in exports and business investment next year.
Latest official figures showed that the UK’s economy grew by 0.8% between July and September, with the Office for National Statistics saying there had been a “fairly strong” performance across all sectors.
Grant Thornton UK LLP is the UK member firm of Grant Thornton International, the sixth largest accounting network in the world by combined fee income.