Of the 1,223 marketers surveyed by Ipsos Mori, 26% said they expect the UK economy to improve over the next 12 months – compared to 11% in the Autumn 2008 survey.

The number of respondents expecting the situation to worsen over the next year halved to 34% compared to the last survey, and 35% said they expect business to improve throughout 2009.

However, 72% said that they did not think the UK would pull out of recession by the end of the year. Thirty-two percent of respondents were worried about losing their jobs over the next 12 months, including 45% of those working in the technology and telecoms sector. Eighteen percent of self-employed marketers feared the recession would force them to close their business this year.

David Thorp, director of research and information at the Chartered Institute of Marketing, said: “Despite fears over the economy and job prospects for the rest of 2009, it is clear that we are turning a corner in marketers’ confidence about the future.”