Media release – Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 16 February 2024
Survey shows costs hurting business as parties urged to get Tasmania moving
The Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is the voice of business in Tasmania and is urging political parties and candidates to tell Tasmanians how they plan to get Tasmania moving.
The TCCI is releasing its latest regular quarterly survey of business expectations.
TCCI CEO, Michael Bailey, said business confidence is treading water because of the cost of doing business and the cost of living.
“The cost of doing business is the number one concern of our members,” Mr Bailey said.
“The cost of living is the second biggest concern. These two issues are by far the biggest worry for the business sector and we want all political parties and candidates to have a clear plan to fix the issue and get Tasmania moving again.
“A shortage of labour and skills is also hurting and is just another reason why we want the next Tasmanian Government to boost the participation rate.
“Just like households, businesses are also concerned about rising insurance costs, interest rates, taxes and power prices.
“This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. These issues have been worrying businesses for months if not years and really we want to see a contest of ideas and some constructive policies to get Tasmania moving during the election.
“Overall, the number of businesses expecting the Tasmanian economy to be weaker in 12 months has decreased by nine per cent to 41 per cent, the number of businesses expecting conditions to be the same this time next year has increased 22 per cent to 41 per cent as well and 18 per cent of businesses expect the Tasmanian economy to be stronger in a year, which is down but shows there is still a reasonable level of confidence among businesses.
“Meanwhile, most businesses said that Christmas trading was about the same in 2023 as it was in 2022, with around 20 per cent of businesses having a merry Christmas and 25 per cent finding conditions tougher.
“Pleasingly, half of the businesses surveyed said they want to grow their business in the next six months, which shows there is some cautious optimism out there, as long as we get the broader settings right.”
A copy of the survey results are attached.
