THE ECONOMY is expected to grow in Coventry and Warwickshire in 2026, according to a leading business survey.
Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce’s final Quarterly Economic Survey of 2025 showed that firms in the region felt the effects of an uncertain period around the time of the Autumn Budget and the fallout from the cyber-attack at JLR.
The survey, which is delivered in partnership with Prime Accountants Group and measures how business owners are feeling, is analysed by the Business Intelligence Service at Warwickshire County Council.
From the responses of businesses across the service and manufacturing sectors, it gives scores out of 100 where anything above 50 indicates growth and anything below 50 is negative.
It looks at a range of aspects of doing business in the region, including the outlook for employment, investment, confidence, and current and future order books for both domestic and overseas sales.
In the vast majority of indicators, there was a drop compared to the previous quarter but, crucially, overall confidence remained above 50 while the overall economic outlook had a score of 56.2.
Corin Crane, chief executive of Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “The survey backs up everything we heard anecdotally at the end of 2025 that firms had been through a difficult and uncertain period. So many businesses were nervous about the Budget and the manufacturing sector had been hit by the JLR attack.
“However, what we started to see after the Budget was confidence starting to return and lots of things that had been put on hold were starting to move forward.
“The first few months of 2026 will provide an important indication of what is to come throughout the year. So, while there will be concern around this survey we have to take it in the context of the period it was carried out.”
Steve Harcourt, director of Prime Accountants Group, added: “This is yet another fascinating survey that shows exactly how businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire were feeling as the end of the year approached.
“I know from my own client base that there was a huge amount of uncertainty but the last few weeks of 2025 felt much more stable and we are all hoping that this year begins on much more solid foundations from which companies across the region can grow.”
