Publication - Statistics
Business Insights and Conditions in Scotland (wave 152): 26 March 2026
Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS) weighted Scotland data up to survey period 2 March to 15 March 2026 (Wave 152). The BICS provides statistics on how current conditions are affecting businesses in Scotland, including impact on financial performance, workforce, trade and resilience.
Key points for businesses with 10+ employees and a presence in Scotland:
- the top concerns for businesses for April 2026 were falling demand of goods and services (11.3%), taxation (10.8%) and business rates (10.3%); although an estimated 14.7% of businesses had no concerns
- for an estimated 24.2% of businesses the prices of goods or services bought in February 2026 increased compared with January 2026, and 9.9% increased the prices of goods and services they sold
- an estimated 30.5% of businesses were expecting to increase the prices of goods or services sold in April 2026; labour costs was the top factor for businesses considering price increases (reported by 45.3%)
- around a quarter (26.6%) of businesses reported that their turnover had increased in February 2026 compared with the previous month, which was up compared to January 2026 (20.5%), and in line with February 2025 (27.5%)
- in March 2026, an estimated 32.6% of businesses expected their business performance to increase over the next 12 months and an estimated 9.1% expected it to decrease
Note that the next BICS Scotland publication, with data to Wave 153, is scheduled for release on Thursday 2 April 2026.
Contact
For enquiries about this publication please contact:
Marina Curran
Business & Innovation Statistics
Office of the Chief Economic Adviser
email: industrystatistics@gov.scot
For general enquiries about Scottish Government statistics please contact:
Office of the Chief Statistician
email: statistics.enquiries@gov.scot