According to a new report, business confidence in New Zealand has risen this year compared to the previous year and experts say the coming year could be a good year for business owners in the country.

Grant Thornton New Zealand co-chairwoman and partner Pam Newlove has said that business confidence is higher than the previous year and New Zealand is 10th on the world business optimism table. Newlove also said that the high confidence level indicates good times in the coming year.

Grant Thornton's latest International Business Report (IBR) showed that the country was at 58 per cent, which is the tenth highest in the world. The figure of 58 per cent is 22 percentage points higher than the previous year. The report also showed that the business confidence rose just seven points to 31 per cent during the year.

"New Zealand business owners have accepted that the tough grind we've been going through over the last couple of years is the new norm and they are just knuckling down and doing the business," Ms Newlove says.

She also said that the traders have learned to operate successfully in recent difficult times. She added that successful businesses are identifying niche products or services and utilizing opportunities to secure market share in the country.

She noted that 34 per cent of New Zealand companies are looking to employ more staff in 2013. The report also showed that 70 per cent of the businesses are expecting increased revenue while 58 per cent were expecting higher profitability during the coming 12 months.