A growing shortage of qualified accountants and other finance professionals, especially in eastern Europe and Asia, will limit efforts to outsource corporate financial functions, an international survey by Deloitte Consulting has found.

Deloitte surveyed 636 senior finance executives from 73 countries, and found two- thirds thought the supply of high-quality talent in Asia was limited or inadequate. Six out of 10 had the same concerns about eastern Europe. Across the world, 42 per cent of executives said their organisations were barely able or unable to meet demand for finance professionals.