Scotland’s private sector recorded another upturn in activity at the end of 2021, and firms remained optimistic regarding activity over the next year, according to the latest purchasing managers’ index from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS).

The lender’s seasonally adjusted headline business activity index – a measure of combined manufacturing and service-sector output – posted 52.7 in December, marking a steep drop from 55.9 in November.

RBS saw signs of a further rise in activity, but said it was the weakest in the current ten-month sequence of growth. Looking at specific sectors, services saw a slower rate of expansion, while factory production fell for the first time since September.

Growth in Scotland’s private sector restrained by Omicron concerns