Quarterly Economic Survey - Q2 2025

Summary

* The report uses data from the Quarterly Economic Survey carried out from 12/05/25 and 09/06/25 in the second quarter (Q2) of 2025.

Total respondents: 354

  • Businesses classified as Manufacturers: 40.0%
  • Businesses classified as Service sector businesses: 60.0%

Out of 354 businesses, 46.0% were active in international markets.

Business Size

  • Micro Businesses: 37.0%
  • Small Businesses: 39.0%
  • Medium Businesses: 19.0%
  • Large Businesses: 5.0%

Wider Economic Context

  • Unemployment rate (Feb’25-Apr’25): Increased by 0.2% to 4.2% compared to the previous three-month period.
  • Youth (16-17 years) unemployment: Decreased sharply from 40.3% to 28.4% over same time period.
  • Job Vacancies (Mar’25-May’25): 736,000 showing a further fall in the number of vacancies by 63,000 from previous 3-month period. This was 35th consecutive decline in number of job vacancies.
  • Bank of England’s latest Monetary Policy report: Changes in global trade policies will impact economy with inflation is set to increase temporarily before falling to 2% target. Interest rates have been cut to 4.25%.
  • Exchange rates (June’25): GBP stands at €1.18 – a decrease by €0.02 to Mar’25.
  • International Trade (Q1 2025): Exports valuing £7.16 billion.

Region at a Glance

*Net Value = Increase - Decrease

🟢 Positive; 🔴 No change; 🟡 Negative

State of Economy Index

Compared to previous quarter, the current quarter saw steep fall in the state of economy index. The value for second quarter of 2025 is 0.

Results

UK Sales

UK Orders

Overseas Sales

Overseas Orders

Past Employment

Future Employment

Recruitment Attempted

Recruitment Attempted

Recruitment Difficulties

Positions Filled

Cash Flow

Operating Capacity

Future Prices

Price Rise Pressures

Investment in Machinery

Investment in Training

Confidence Turnover

Confidence Profitability

Business Concerns

Commentary

*Commentary generated by Google Gemini AI Agent

The report suggests a fluctuating East Midlands economy. While most economic indicators initially increased, overseas sales and orders declined. The “State of Economy Value” dipped sharply around Q2 2020 but showed signs of recovery. Recruitment difficulties, especially for skilled roles, persisted, with businesses increasingly operating below full capacity. There was a shift towards anticipating increased future prices, and businesses were most concerned about inflation and taxation. Despite some fluctuations, there’s an overall trend showing reduced confidence in turnover and profitability between Q3 2024 and Q1 2025, with slight improvements in Q2 2025.

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