Business conditions and confidence strengthened in February as the Omicron virus wave eased and the late 2021 momentum was regained. After a fall in January, the conditions index rebounded to be above its long-run average. The rebound came on the back of a strong rise in the employment index – reflecting fewer health-related employment disruptions and strong labour demand – as well as improvements in trading and profitability. Almost all mainland states and industries shared in the upswing, but WA saw conditions fall as the planned border reopening was postponed. There was also a broad-based improvement in ... (full story)