The poll, which ran last week, asked if respondents were experiencing an upturn in orders.

The 198 responses were roughly spread across the range of answers with 21% reporting a "significant upturn of forward orders" and 27% reporting an upturn, but expressing doubt as to whether it would last.

However, 28%, the largest category, said that the climate was getting worse while 23% said it was "about the same as last month".

The findings reflect the uncertainty that prevails across the economy as to whether the recession has hit the bottom and how sustainable any recovery may be.

Yesterday, the PMI Index, the percentage of purchasing managers in manufacturing reporting an improvement in conditions, recorded a surprise fall in August below the "stability benchmark" of 50 to 49.7, down from 50.2 the previous month.

Growth is expected to return to the economy in the third quarter of the year, however many economics have cast doubt on the sustainability of the recovery.