Chirpy CFOs still won't spend big for fear of global setbacks

THERE is an odd feel to the business community right now. Spring is the air, which is always a good sign, but there’s also a strong sense of confidence returning. This is borne out by the regular Deloitte survey of chief financial officers, which shows their mood is at its most buoyant since 2020.

- Chris Blackhurst

Concerns about energy prices and practical problems dealing with Brexit have eased. So, 25% more chief financial officers feel better about the future than worse, compared with 17% more feeling the opposite three months ago. That is the biggest swing since the lift from the launch of the Covid vaccine rollout.

Energy costs have fallen since the beginning of the year; under Rishi Sunak relations with the EU have improved; and we’ve had a relatively stable period in politics. Sunak has proved a calming influence at No 10, and the chaos engendered by the Truss and Johnson regimes has disappeared. There’s been some rare, post-Brexit cheer with the highly promising joining of the Indo-Pacific trade pact.

The Deloitte poll was conducted after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the forced takeover of Credit Suisse. Still, that failed to dampen optimism. If anything, the banks in crisis supplied something of a boost since the response from governments and the industry was so quick and effective (although not without lasting legal ramifications in the case of Credit Suisse).