The Scottish economy is “barely growing” in its recovery, even though there have been signs of improvement for the region’s commercial property market.
Firm Deloitte has suggested that the commercial property market in Scotland is showing positive signs, with its UK Key Cities report suggesting that there may be a growth of up to seven per cent within the sector in Edinburgh this year, whilst Glasgow will enjoy a rise of five per cent.
Alasdair Ramsay, head of Deloitte Real Estate in Scotland, said: “Although there are limitations to the extent of market recovery we should expect across Scotland this year, it is the most positive picture we have been able to paint for the region in some time.”
Even though the market seems to be reflecting an upwards trend, the overall picture of the Scottish economy still seems bleak however. In a new report by the Bank of Scotland, the bank suggested that as the nation’s economy was linked to the eurozone, recovery was “barely growing”.
A recent business survey of over 400 companies in Scotland revealed that even though 29 per cent of companies saw their turnover increasing in the first quarter of 2013, 37 per cent had stayed the same whilst 34 per cent had actually seen their profits fall. This is an overall negative balance of minus five per cent.
Donald MacRae, chief economist at the Bank of Scotland, added: “The Scottish economy stagnated during autumn 2012. A return to more vigorous growth in the Scottish economy awaits a further increase in confidence in both consumers and businesses. This in turn depends upon building on policy measures to contain the eurozone sovereign debt crisis and implementing policies to restore the eurozone and UK economies to growth.”
Analysts will have to wait until the end of the second quarter to get a more realistic picture of how the rest of the year will play out.