The latest Deloitte survey of UK Chief Financial Officers, released this morning, examines the thinking of some of the UK's largest corporates on the forthcoming referendum on EU membership.

The survey shows that support for EU membership among CFOs has risen. 75% of CFOs say that it is in the interests of UK business for the UK to remain in the European Union, up from 62% in the fourth quarter of 2015. 8% of CFOs favour leaving the EU, up from 6% in the fourth quarter. 17% of CFOs say they either don't know, have no strong opinion or prefer not to say.

The EU scores high marks with CFOs for its beneficial effects on UK exports, inward investment and financial services. But at the opposite end of the scale only 15% of CFOs think UK business and the UK economy benefit from the EU's legal, regulatory and compliance framework.

The EU referendum has become the dominant concern for CFOs. It tops the corporate worry list, eclipsing longstanding concerns about emerging markets and growth in the euro area.

Brexit-worries seem to be behind a marked increase in CFO perceptions of financial and economic uncertainty. It now stands at levels last seen in early 2013, at the tail end of the euro crisis. Risk appetite has also suffered, with the proportion of CFOs saying that now is a good time to take risk dropping from 51% to 25% in the last year.

With the storm clouds gathering CFOs have maintained a focus on reducing costs and increasing cash flow. Enthusiasm for expansion has taken a knock. Corporates are pulling in their horns, with expectations for hiring and capital spending at three-year lows.

Despite growing concerns about the forthcoming EU referendum, 53% of CFOs say they have not made, and are not in the process of making, contingency plans for a possible UK exit from the EU. 26% say they have made, or are making, such plans.

It may be that the continued, if narrowing, lead for the "remain" camp in the opinion polls, means that many corporates see a UK exit from the UK as being a fairly low probability event.

This is the 35th quarterly UK CFO survey. 120 CFOs, including 75 at FTSE350 companies, took part. The full report is available at:

http://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/finance/articles/deloitte-cfo-survey.html

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