Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The EY Item Club estimates a 0.3% fall in GDP for the whole of next year, downgrading a previous forecast of 1% growth. It is predicted that GDP should return to growth in H2 2023. before expanding 2.4% in 2024 and 2.3% in 2025. It expects GDP to grow by 4.3% overall this year, with…
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The cost of borrowing money has reached its highest level since 2010, according to a survey of 87 Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) by Deloitte. Over half of CFOs (56%) rate credit as costly while over a third of finance leaders (39%) note that new credit is not easily available. The financial market impact of the…
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The latest report from the National Audit Office (NAo) into the Covid-19 business support schemes criticizes the Government for not doing more to prevent mistakes and fraudulent claims when rolling out the programs. The NAO said a total of £4.5 billion or nearly 4.6% of the total cost of the Government’s £96.9bn emergency Covid-19 support…
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Business output and confidence fell to its lowest level since February 2021 last month as employers put the brakes on recruitment because of growing economic uncertainty according to research by BDO. The latest numbers mark the first time all four of BDO’s Business Trends indices have fallen together since the first national lockdown in April 2020.…
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A survey by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has revealed a decline in business confidence in the past quarter with as many as four in ten firms saying they thought their profitability would fall in the next 12 months. Fewer businesses are reporting increased sales; only 33% of firms reported increased domestic sales, down…
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The number of construction companies at significant risk of closure has jumped 54 per cent to 16,755 this quarter, up from 10,686, according to new data from Mazars. The analysis of quarterly data alone found that 5,900 more construction businesses have been added to the ‘at significant risk of insolvency’ category. Surging prices for essential…
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New research by Santander has indicated that 80% of smaller firms are struggling to compete with the lower prices offered by larger firms, meaning 72% are losing customers. While 73% believe the current economic climate is making it harder than ever to compete, 69% said they have no option but to increase their prices. The…
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Analysis by KPMG shows that while most Chief Executive Officer (CEOs) are preparing for a downturn, most expect it to be short-lived and are confident about the longer-term economic outlook. The research revealed that 8 out of 10 Global and UK CEOs are anticipating a recession, and 58 percent of them (62 percent in the UK) expect…
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More than two-thirds (68%) of European small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are planning to adopt real-time payment processing in the next 12 months, according to new research by Vodeno. At present, just 10% of SMEs said they receive payments instantly, and only 11% within an hour. By comparison, 35% said it takes between two and three…
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Business confidence stabilised in September after falling for three consecutive months between June and August. The index remains at 16%, its joint lowest level since March 2021, according to the latest Lloyds Bank Business Barometer. While business confidence remained below the long-term average of 28%, it is above the lowest levels seen in 2020 during…
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The British Business Bank (BBB), which helps small businesses access finance, has warned that smaller firms face a challenging few years on the back of the economic downturn. The BBB said lending to start-ups and the smallest businesses could be particularly vulnerable to the impact of economic uncertainty as they often do not have collateral.…
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Despite the considerable headwinds of soaring energy prices, recession forecasts, and soaring inflation, small business leaders in the UK nonetheless remain bullish in their approach, with the majority adapting and reacting to the changing economic environment according to new research from Novuna Business Finance. The quarterly tracking study of 1,201 small business leaders found that…
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New analysis by UK Finance has indicated that lending to small and medium-sized enterprises SMEs has remained stable in the first half of 2022. The figures shows that gross lending to SMEs edged up higher to £5.1 billion in the second quarter of 2022, with demand for overdraft facilities remaining stable following a rise in…
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