Business confidence has started to improve, according to a a survey by accountants BDO Stoy Hayward.
Business confidence has started to improve, according to a survey by accountants BDO Stoy Hayward.
Optimism among companies has risen to its highest level for a year, according to the survey.
July's interest rate cut and the fall in the pound combined to lift the gloomy mood that prevailed around the time of the war in Iraq, it said.
Chris Grove, a partner at the firm, said: "UK businesses should be able to look forward to modestly improving trading conditions and low funding costs."
The results concurred with a recent Reuters survey, which found that City economists were also optimistic about future prospects.
Peter Gutmann, a director of Experian Business Strategies that worked on the report, said: "The optimism expressed by a number of businesses is encouraging amid the persistently gloomy picture portrayed."
