Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The Bank of England has revealed that it has held interest rates at 5.25%. or the sixth time in a row by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). Experts believe that the Bank may look to cut rates as early as June, although a reduction in August or September is said to be…
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Research from Dun & Bradstreet has found that 85% of UK organisations don’t believe that enhancing supply chain resilience and diversification is crucial for future-proofing their businesses, yet 77% of business leaders are concerned about their level of resilience for future disruptions. The findings reveal that over half of UK businesses (57%) admit that their…
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Small business confidence made a welcome return to positive territory for the first time in two years, the first evidence that the small business community has now come out of the late 2023 recession, according to FSB’s Small Business Index (SBI) for Q1 2024. The headline confidence reading jumped up over 20 points to reach…
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Small businesses are being put off from innovating and growing by damaging financial regulations and inadequate support from banks according to a report by the House of Commons Treasury select committee. In its report on access to banking services for smaller firms, MPs on the Committee condemn the unfair debanking of legitimate businesses and substandard…
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A fraudster who illegally secured a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan designed to support businesses during the Covid pandemic has been handed a suspended sentence. Rian O’Keeffe, 28, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for two years, when he appeared at Southwark Crown Court. O’Keeffe, of Lisgar Terrace, Hammersmith, is also subject to a…
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The global economy is continuing growing at a modest pace, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook. The Economic Outlook projects steady global GDP growth of 3.1% in 2024, the same as the 3.1% in 2023, followed by a slight pick-up to 3.2% in 2025. The impact of tight monetary conditions continues being felt, particularly in…
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Latest data from the British Retail Consortium has revealed that a footfall decreased by 7.2% in April (YoY), down from -1.3% in March with high Street footfall decreasing by 6.9% in April (YoY), down from -1.5% in March. Retail Parks footfall decreased by 6.2% in April (YoY), down from -3.5% in March whilst Shopping Centre footfall increased by 7.2% in April (YoY), down from…
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Latest analysis by the British Retail Consortium has found that shop Price annual inflation eased to 0.8% in April, down from 1.3% in March. This is below the 3-month average rate of 1.4%. Shop price annual growth is its lowest since December 2021. Non-Food entered deflation at -0.6% in April, down from 0.2% in the…
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The Institute of Director’s (IoD) Economic Confidence Index, which measures business leader optimism in prospects for the UK economy, rose to -10 in April 2024 from -12 in March. This increase sustains the leap upwards that the Index experienced in March, and continues its steady recovery from its recent low point of -31 in June…
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Latest Begbies Traynor Red Flag Alert research, which has provided a snapshot of British corporate health for over 15 years, highlights the speed at which financial distress has accelerated over the last 12 months, with 554,554 UK businesses now in ‘significant’ financial distress – a 30.8% rise compared to Quarter 1 2023. More serious ‘critical’…
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The number of UK-listed companies issuing a profit warning over the last 12 months grew to 18.7%, 1% higher than 2008, at the peak of the Global Financial Crisis, according to EY-Parthenon’s latest report. In Q1 2024, the number of profit warnings issued by UK listed companies fell 7% year-on-year to 70 and dropped slightly…
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Research by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has found that business confidence tripled to 14.4 in the first quarter of 2024, up from just 4.2 in the final quarter of last year. Sentiment was at its highest level since Q1 2022. The quarterly index increased threefold to 14.4 in Q1…
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The latest Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) data indicated that the length of time small businesses waited to be paid after issuing an invoice was 28.4 days in the March quarter, the same as the December quarter. The largest improvement was in the month of March, when this payment time metric was only 27.9 days…
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