BICS weighted Scotland estimates: data to wave 87

Latest main findings for businesses with 10+ employees and a presence in Scotland

• in the period 10 July to 23 July 2023 (Wave 87), 39.4% of businesses reported experiencing a shortage of workers - rising to 48.1% in the Construction industry sector, and 46.1% in the Accommodation & Food Services industry sector
• in Wave 87, 55.4% of businesses reported that the shortage of workers has resulted in employees working increased hours
• the main concerns for businesses for August 2023 were inflation of goods and services prices (20.9%) and energy prices (19.3%)
• of businesses currently trading that have exported in the last 12 months, 23.8% reported exporting less in June 2023 compared to June 2022, and 16.2% reported exporting more
• the exporting and importing challenges that were most commonly reported to have increased in June 2023 were changes in transportation costs, changes in exchange rates and additional paperwork– this was the case for both exporting and importing