Sharp Rise In Orders Gives Private Sector A Boost

There are many things that can give a business some encouragement for the future, but there is nothing quite like a sharp rise in new orders to give them that feel-good factor. Well this is exactly what has happened during the course of last month (May 2024) with new orders rising more quickly than they have done in more than 2 years.

This data has been revealed from a survey by the Ulster Bank, who use a sample of approximately 200 businesses in Northern Ireland from all parts of the business sector to gather their information. The survey also discovered that the job market remains strong and, as this has led to a steady rise in wages over the last few months, some of this money has been fed through into the prices.

Wages Are Feeding Into The Prices That Consumers Pay

Here is what Ulster Bank’s chief economist Richard Ramsey said about these latest results, the following has been copied from an article by John Campbell on the BBC News website:

“Retailers are recording the highest rates of cost inflation, in part linked to the rise in the National Living Wage, which is feeding into the prices that consumers pay,”

He added that on the other hand, construction costs are rising at their weakest pace in 45 months which is “perhaps an indication that material cost inflation is continuing to come back from record highs”.

The Strong Private Sector Performance Shows No Signs Of Slowing

Mr Ramsey said that despite the continued challenge from inflation the NI economy appeared to be picking up some momentum.

“The four months since the return of the Northern Ireland Executive have witnessed a strong private sector performance, and this shows no signs of slowing, indeed quite the opposite, with the pace of output, new orders and employment all accelerating in May.

“Northern Ireland’s performance compared favourably with other UK regions, with NI topping the league table for output and employment.”

In the public sector the situation has not been so rosy over the last few months, however this may change very soon as most of the industrial action by workers in this sector has now ceased. Since the UK government provided funds to Stormont most of the disputes have now been resolved thankfully and the public sector should have a much stronger showing in the months ahead. The economic prospects for the near to mid future look a lot more promising than for some time.