Small firms in the UK are more confident about their prospects this year than are companies in other parts of Europe, a new survey has found.
Research published by printing company Lexmark shows that 76% of British SMEs are confident that they will grow this year.
That compares with 58% of companies in France, 50% in Italy and just 26% in Germany - which is beset by serious economic problems and industrial unrest.
The results come despite growing fears of a fresh downturn in the UK. Since the beginning of 2003, successive reports have warned of slower growth in the country's retail and manufacturing sectors.
On average across Europe, 53% of companies said they expected growth of 10% or more in 2003, but in the UK nearly one in five said their company would develop by at least 20%.
Source: BusinessEurope.com
