Agents' summary of business conditions - September 2026

We regularly publish a summary of business conditions based on our Agency network's discussions with many businesses from across the UK every reporting period.

Demand and output

Output and business confidence has improved in some sectors. But there remain significant pockets of weakness with little expectation of imminent improvement. 

Employment and pay

Employment intentions remain broadly flat. Recruitment difficulties remain below normal. Pay settlements reported so far for 2026 average around 3.6%.

Costs and prices

Input costs and consumer prices continue to edge up as firmer energy-intensive input costs are only partially offset by weak demand and retail competition.

Published on 11 September 2026

Related contents and download

• Bank of England Agents' scores (XLSX 0.8MB)
• Definitions for the Agents’ scores

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