Fired up: Recovery more than just a flash in the pan as services boost economy

Business activity in the dominant sector grew to its highest level since 2007 and confidence rose strongly, according to the Confederation of British Industry.

Alchemist bartender Tom Fearon, 24, seen here preparing his Creme de Carnival cocktail in Leeds, and his colleagues are helping hotels, restaurants and bars and the travel and leisure industries, see their fastest rate of increase in trade since August 2007. Business and professional services, which includes accountancy, legal, and marketing firms, also saw a sharp turnaround in business volumes, rising at their fastest pace since November 2007, while activity in consumer services picked up even further.

Stephen Gifford, CBI director of economics, said: “We’ve seen a further build-up of momentum in the service sector this quarter, with business and professional services firms in particular seeing a turnaround in their fortunes. Confidence has risen strongly across the board, and the outlook is positive in the short-term. But consumer services firms are a bit more worried about the longer-term, and have scaled back their investment and expansion plans.”

He added that conditions remain “tricky” with households remaining squeezed.

Picture: James Hardisty