FT-Economist Business Barometer: August 2011

Carried out for the FT and The Economist by the Economist Intelligence Unit and based on interviews with over 1,500 business executives around the world, the barometer highlights the change in business sentiment and differences between regions and sectors.

Methodology

Based on a global survey of the Economist Intelligence Unit executive panel. Respondents are selected from a cross-section of industries, company sizes, and represent a range of senior roles. The survey was conducted online.

• Almost half of the executives surveyed were in the so-called c-suite – they held jobs at the very top of companies with titles that include the word “chief” – and almost half of the companies they worked for have a turnover of more than $500m.
• More than a quarter of the executives who responded work for companies that operate in more than 25 countries.
• Over one-third of the companies surveyed were Western European, a quarter were from the Asia-Pacific region, nearly 20 per cent from North America and the rest from Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and eastern Europe.

The survey, conducted for The Economist and the Financial Times by the Economist Intelligence Unit, was carried out online between June 22 and July 29.

The previous edition of the Barometer can be found here.