Slow but sustained growth in economy

That’s according to the latest Quarterly Economic Survey from the Lancashire Chambers of Commerce.

The growth is mainly being driven by the services sector, although the Q1 figures show a decline in domestic sales and orders for service businesses.

In manufacturing, domestic sales and orders recovered slightly after a weak set of results in Q4 2015. However, the domestic balance measures were still below their historical average of the last four years.

The new survey, compiled by the county’s three Chambers in association with Moore and Smalley chartered accountants and business advisors, shows that Lancashire’s exporters continue to face difficulties. Despite some improvement on the previous quarter, the export balance measures in both sectors contracted again in Q1.

Stephen Gregson, Corporate Finance Director at Moore and Smalley, said that there were hints that the underlying economy was performing more strongly than the official data might indicate. But the Government should pay heed that austerity policies were harming the performance of many ‘developed’ economies.”

Babs Murphy, Chief Executive of the North & Western Lancashire Chamber, said: “The Government must do more to address the growing imbalances in our economy.”