The Middle East outperformed other global regions for business confidence during the first quarter of this year, with Saudi Arabia and the UAE the standout countries, the latest edition of the Global Economic Conditions Survey by ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) showed. The survey noted that nearly a third of all respondents from the Middle East (32 percent) reported confidence gains in early 2012, up from 26 percent in late 2011. The report said business confidence was very high in both countries with 42 percent and 38.5 percent of respondents respectively reporting confidence gains. The survey said both countries could rely on strong, sustainable government spending while Saudi Arabia boasted "the best performance of any major market in terms of new orders and investment". Egypt, on the other hand, was a negative and was still reeling from the last year's transition, the survey added. Only 24 percent of respondents reported a confidence gain, compared to 30 percent in late 2011. The latest edition of the survey has recorded a sharp reversal in perceptions during the first quarter of 2012. Compared to the last quarter of 2011, the share of respondents reporting confidence gains nearly doubled from 16 percent to 29 percent, while that of respondents reporting a loss of confidence fell from 46 percent to 31 percent. These confidence levels are consistent with a return of developed nations to substantial if not robust economic growth. Similarly, the share of respondents who believed the global economy was recovering or about to do so also nearly doubled, from 22 percent to 42 percent. Those who believed the global economy is deteriorating or stagnating were still in the majority (54 percent) but they were substantially fewer in numbers than in the previous quarter (73 percent). Globally, the survey suggested that the global economy recovered substantially in early 2012 and regained some of the dynamism it had lost over the last year. The survey findings, representing the views of about 2,200 professional accountants around the world, showed the share of respondents reporting confidence gains in their own organizations had nearly doubled from 16 percent in late 2011 to 29 percent. However, the majority (54 percent) still believed the global economy was deteriorating or stagnating, but that figure was down from 73 percent in the previous quarter. Emmanouil Schizas, editor of the ACCA/IMA Global Economic Conditions Survey, said: "When the results came in, we were a little skeptical and had to tick off all of the likely objections first. Much of the rise in confidence is being reversed as we speak, as the relief factor subsides, but a lot of it is here to stay." He said confidence gains were fairly consistent across regions and industries, although the Americas and Western Europe seemed to benefit the most in early 2012, as did manufacturers and distributors, particularly in the high
