The West Midlands has posted its sharpest export gain for more than a decade, according to the Confederation of British Industry.

The lobby group's latest survey also found improved optimism in the region over exports for the first time in four years.

The CBI report said business confidence worsened - but at a less marked level than since mid-2004.

It said the region was among the areas which posted a rise in output, however it was predicted a further 3,000 manufacturing jobs would be shed in the next quarter.

Sally Hannah, assistant regional director for the West Midlands, said on the export gain: "This shows our members are out there doing the right things and innovating, competing globally and working to keep manufacturing strong. It's great news."

She said the job loss fears came as part of an on-going "technology against people" trend.

The CBI said export orders fell slightly at the national level but this masked a wide variation in performance across the regions.

The West Midlands "posted its sharpest gain for more than a decade, with steady increases in the South West, the East of England and the North East".

There were also strong upturns in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where the rise brought to an end two years of falling orders.

The CBI said the West Midlands saw "an encouraging, if modest, rise in export confidence, boosted by a rebound in total orders - the strongest for two years - with chemicals and man-made fibres and metal manufacturing doing particularly well".

It said business confidence in the region worsened in the current survey, but "the deterioration was less marked than at any time since mid-2004".

The improvement in "sentiment regarding exports was the first in four years" while the rise in new orders was "slightly above the national increase and the first since mid-2004".

However, that recovery was expected to be short-lived, with new orders falling in the coming quarter, against a modest increase across the UK as a whole.

The latest CBI/Experian Regional Trends Survey over-all found manufacturers' optimism about future export prospects had improved for the first time since July 2004.

Several regions showed a particularly marked improvement.

The strong economic picture globally and, in particular, signs of recovery across the important Eurozone market, had helped boost UK demand in recent months.

A small improvement in domestic conditions also supported national business confidence in the past quarter, which stabilised following 18 months of deterioration.

In four UK regions, the upturn in export sentiment was particularly marked, with the East Midlands seeing the strongest improvement since mid-2003.

Scotland, the East of England and the South East & London also experienced a surge in optimism.

The UK as a whole posted a marginal increase in total orders, reversing more than a year of steady decline. Output at the UK level stabilised in the past three months, in line with expectations after a year of contraction.

The West Midlands, Scotland and East of England also posted increases in output.

Expectations for the next three months suggested that output at the national level will show an encouraging rise, with particularly strong expansion expected in the East Midlands, boosted by a sharp increase in food, drink & tobacco, chemicals & man-made fibres and engineering.

Manufacturing continued to shed jobs, with sharp declines in employment experienced across virtually all the regions. But there was some encouragement - the East Midlands and Scotland both expect a modest rise in employment.

A further 28,000 manufacturing jobs will be shed in the second quarter.