Business confidence is on the rise across the Highlands and Islands, according to the results of a new survey.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) commissioned the research in partnership with South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE). Fieldwork carried out by Ipsos Scotland in June and July among 1,007 businesses revealed that 53% of expressed optimism – up from 44% in the previous survey conducted in November and December 2024 .

Just under half of businesses (48%) were actively pursuing growth, while 38% were satisfied with current performance and 12% were planning to downsize.

Arts and entertainment and tourism businesses were more likely to strive for growth; the former having been more likely to have struggled over the past six months.

The proportion of regional businesses importing

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