Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
One in five (19%) UK-listed companies issued a profit warning in 2024, the third highest annual proportion in 25 years, behind only the 2020 pandemic (35%) and the impact of the dot-com bubble burst and 9/11 in 2001 (23%). EY-Parthenon’s latest Profit Warnings report found that UK-listed companies issued 274 profit warnings last year – including 71…
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Private sector firms expect another significant fall in activity over the next three months (weighted balance of -22%), according to the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) latest Growth Indicator. Expectations are broadly unchanged from December, which was the weakest in over two years. This pessimism was widespread across the private sector. Business volumes in the…
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The latest ‘Red Flag Alert’ report from Begbies Traynor reveals a worrying surge in the number of businesses in the UK entering ‘critical’ financial distress in the final quarter of 2024. In Quarter 4 (Q$) 2024, ‘critical’ financial distress rose by 50.2% to 46,853 companies, underscoring a deteriorating outlook. Of the 22 sectors covered by…
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Two in five SMEs (42%) cite rising costs and taxes as their biggest concerns, with 70% questioning the Government’s support for SMEs according to new research from iwoca. The research also highlighted the looming threat of higher taxes under the current Government comes in close second—a primary worry for two in five (40%) owners. Leaders of the…
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New research by Intuit Quickbooks has found that 27% of small businesses relied on credit cards for operations in 2024, with 33% charging over 25% of their monthly expenses. Intuit Quickbooks says that this trend highlights a deeper issue of restricted access to affordable traditional financing, as banks become more selective in lending. In addition,…
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The UK economy experienced a modest growth of 0.1% in November, falling short of the anticipated 0.2% increase, as reported by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Liz McKeown, Director of Economic Statistics at the ONS, said “The economy continues to be broadly flat, having grown slightly in November following two small falls in the…
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The UK economy is facing increasing risks of stagflation, according to analysis by the ICAEW. UK business confidence fell by the largest amount in two years to hover just above zero, amid record tax concerns and a slowdown in domestic sales growth. The ICAEW’s Business Confidence Monitor (BCM) for Q4 2024 fell by 14.2 points…
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UK inflation fell in December for the first time in three months as hotel prices fell and tobacco costs eased according to latest ONS data.Annualised inflation came in at 2.5% in December, down from the 2.6% reported in November. Menawhile, core inflation came in at 3.2% in the 12 months to December 2024, down from…
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Business confidence among finance chiefs has reached a two-year low with Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) expecting to make cost cutting measures in 2025 according to research by Deloitte. The data shows that business optimism fell to a two-year low in the fourth quarter with 26% of CFOs reporting that they feel more pessimistic about the…
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2025 will be the most expensive on record for businesses who employ workers on the minimum wage, according to new analysis by the Centre for Policy Studies. The research shows that the tax wedge – the combined amount of tax paid by employees and employers – for those on minimum wage will equate to a…
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The Christmas ‘golden quarter’ of 2024 has not provided the anticipated boost for UK retailers, as consumer confidence remains low according to the British Retail Consortium-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor. The data showed that sales increased by only 0.4% in the three months leading to December compared to the previous year. December’s sales, including Black Friday,…
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More than half of companies are planning to raise prices in the next three months as they face rising costs and taxes pressures according British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). Following the Budget, concern about taxation is now cited by 63% of responding firms, up from 48% in Q3. This is the highest level of tax…
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The Institute of Directors (IoD) Economic Confidence Index, which measures business leaders’ optimism about the UK economy, crept up to -61 in December 2024 from -65 in November. The rise represents the fourth-lowest reading of the index since its introduction in July 2016. Business leader confidence in their own organisations also rose to +8 in December, from…
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