The Westpac CCI Survey of Business Expectations revealed 53 per cent of surveyed WA businesses expect the State’s economic conditions to deteriorate over the next year.
The pessimism rose from 27 per cent in the March quarter, as recorded in the Westpac CCI Survey of Business Expectations.
At the same time, the number of optimistic business owners fell from 29 per cent in March to 12 per cent.
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READ NOWCCI chief economist John Nicolaou said the survey also asked about business response to regulation and reminded the Federal Government to be aware of its role in providing a stable policy environment to help ease some of the cost burdens.
‘In this more challenging environment, businesses are clearly working hard to protect profitability, with almost a quarter of businesses reporting a better bottom line this quarter, up from 13 per cent in March,’ Mr Nicolaou said.
‘Uncertainty has also likely come from concerns over the economic environment, as the WA economy transitions as the peak in resources investment boom approaches.’
Business Armadale members prepared to meet with Liberal’s Joe Hockey last Wednesday, who is responsible for the Opposition’s Treasurer portfolio.
But in the wake of the recent change in Prime Ministership, Mr Hockey was replaced by Scott Morrison and Arthur Sinodinos who shared their knowledge of finance and immigration at the business function.