Business confidence in Scotland slips to 5%: Stocks to watch

Highlights:

• Amid the economic turbulence, business confidence in Scotland slipped by 10 points in October.
• The manufacturing sector fell to 13%, while retail fell to 9%.

The current wave of economic challenges is hitting consumers and businesses, making the outlook for the next few months less optimistic. This becomes more concerning as the upcoming months are among the busiest trading period for several businesses. In fact, business confidence in Scotland slipped 10 points to 5% during October.

As per the latest figures from the business Barometer from Bank of Scotland Commercial Banking, business confidence in the manufacturing sector fell to 13% in October, the lowest level since February 2021, when COVID-19-related restrictions had affected business activity. This is also the sector's fifth month in a row to witness a fall.

Other sectors like retail and services also fell by 9% and 16%, respectively. Both are at the lowest levels since early 2021.

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On the other hand, not all sectors saw a decline. The construction sector rose by 10 points to 20%, even though it is still less than the first half of the year.

The survey of 1,200 companies, including 100 in Scotland, found that the top target areas for Scottish businesses for growth in the next six months were evolving their offering, followed by investment in teams and reaching new markets.

In terms of the overall business confidence for the UK, a drop of one percentage point was recorded during October, bringing it to 15%.

On the back of this information, let's explore some FTSE-listed stocks offering decent returns.

BAE Systems plc (LON: BA.)

The arms, security and aerospace group belongs to the FTSE 100 index and has offered a decent return to shareholders over the past 52 weeks, with the share price rising 48.18%. The year-to-date return is also in the similar range at 46.71%. The stock has an EPS of 0.55.

Qinetiq Group Plc (LON: QQ.)

Another British multinational defence technology group, Qinetiq Group, holds a market cap of £2,081.21 million and an EPS of 0.16. The FTSE 250 company has offered 31.77% returns to shareholders in the past 12 months, and the year-to-date return stands at 33.46%.

Telecom Plus Plc (LON: TEP)

The British multi-utility firm supplies electricity, gas etc., to domestic and commercial customers. As of 31 October, the firm enjoys a market cap of £1,682.04 million and an EPS of 0.45. The stock has offered its shareholders returns of 68.25% over the past 12 months, with the YTD return currently standing at 32.40%.

Note: The above content constitutes a very preliminary observation or view based on market trends and is of limited scope without any in-depth fundamental valuation or technical analysis. Any interest in stocks or sectors should be thoroughly evaluated taking into consideration the associated risks.