THE agency responsible for economic development in the two counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire claims it is on course to meet its key performance targets.

Advantage West Midlands said it had exceeded its own half-year forecasts for the number of jobs, businesses and learning opportunities created in the West Midlands.

Following a strong performance in the second quarter, the agency was on track to meet all targets by the end of the financial year.

The claim comes following criticism of the agency's performance in November, when it failed to meet most of its first quarter targets set by the Government.

AWM defended its performance then, saying a lot of projects would come to fruition in the last quarter of the financial year.

John Edwards, AWM chief executive, welcomed the latest figures, saying they were "very encouraging".

"They show that our performance in the second quarter was strong," he said.

"Taken together with our achievements in the first quarter, the agency has done far better than we predicted in the first six months of the year."

He said AWM had created or safeguarded more than 2,000 jobs, beating its six-month target by more than one third.

"We have stated that, by the end of the financial year, we will have created or safeguarded 20,000 jobs and this shows we are well on course to achieve this target.

"The vast majority of jobs, businesses, brownfield land and learning opportunities will be delivered in the final quarter of the year.

He said, however, the agency was "not complacent".