Hopes of continued growth for the region’s businesses remain strong, despite confidence levels slumping for the first time since 2009 amid the crisis in the Eurozone, new research shows.

According to the latest Business Confidence Monitor from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and business advisors Grant Thornton, confidence among the region’s senior business professionals has taken a turn for the worse into negative territory in the final quarter of the year.

See Thursday's T&A for the full story