BUSINESSES in Yorkshire saw the sharpest slowdown in output growth of all UK regions in April, with the pace of expansion slipping to a 15-month low.

That is the gloomy news today in the Lloyds TSB Yorkshire & Humber monthly survey of carefully selected companies, which provide an advance indication of what is really happening in the private-sector economy in the region.

The report, which tracks output, new orders, employment and prices across both manufacturing and service sectors acknowledges a further improvement in the region’s business conditions, reflecting solid gains in both activity and new orders.

But it also points out that the rate of growth had weakened since March to a 15-month low while facing strong inflationary pressures in April.

The headline Lloyds TSB Yorkshire & Humber Business Activity Index, which measures the combined output of the region’s manufacturing and service sectors, slipped from 57.9 in March to 53.6 in April.

The report said: “Although the latest reading signalled expansion in output for the 23rd successive month, the rate of growth was the slowest since January 2010.”

Survey respondents linked output growth to larger volumes of new business during the latest survey period but while the region’s private sector saw more job creation, the rates of employment growth had weakened since March and were the slowest in seven months. Higher input prices were recorded in April, particularly those related to fuel.