Business News Articles

Business insolvency hits three-year low
The rate of business insolvencies declined to the lowest rate since June 2007, according to the latest Insolvency Index from Experian. The data revealed that the rate of insolvencies dropped to 0.07% in August, the lowest rate in three years. The average financial strength score for businesses increased from 80.79 in August 2009 to 81.06 in August 2010. The biggest increase in financial stre... more

Business owners embrace flexible working
Small and medium-sized businesses owners are increasingly working away from the traditional office environment, according to research conducted by Orange. The data shows that 88% company owners said that they now have the option to work away from the traditional office set up, with 74% of those choosing to work from home or a flexible workspace. Orange also found that 82% of business owners ... more

Cable speech labelled 'anti-business'
Business secretary Vince Cable has come in for criticism following a speech he made yesterday at the Liberal Democrat conference in which he called bankers "spics and gamblers." Cable also attacked the state of the free market and reiterated calls for reform of the banking system to separate High Street and investment activities, so as to prevent a repeat of the financial crisis. Business gr... more

SMEs not expecting help with late payments
More than half of small firms in the UK do not anticipate any help from the government in tackling late payment problems, according to research from Bacs. The data shows that 56% of companies are dealing with these problems by themselves, by sharpening up their billing and credit control procedures. However, there are still 769,000 companies affected by late payments and the total amount of ... more

UK recovery will be ‘fragile’
The UK's economy will recover more slowly than previously thought next year, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The CBI has predicted that GDP will increase by 2% in 2011, not 2.5% as forecast in June this year. The revision has been caused by the government's comprehensive spending cuts aimed at reducing the record level of debt. However, the CBI did state that the pr... more

Cable: banks heading for ‘train crash’
Business Secretary Vince Cable has warned banks they could be heading for a "train crash" if they award large bonuses while small businesses struggle to access credit. Cable also warned that politicians would go on the "war path" and said banks would be subjected to more financial penalties unless they increase levels of lending. Data recently released by the Bank of England showed lending t... more

Public borrowing hits £15.9bn
Public sector borrowing reached a record high of £15.9bn in August, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This figure is higher than economists had predicted and comes after higher inflation led to a rise in interest payments on index-linked government bonds. The latest figure means borrowing in the first five months of the financial year has reached £58.1bn. The figures e... more

Mortgage lending hits 10-year low
Total mortgage declined in August for the second month in succession, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). The CML said that its members lent £11.4bn to home buyers and people re-mortgaging. This is the lowest August figure since 2000 and reflects the subdued level of activity in the UK property market. "Mortgage activity almost always falls August on July due to the summer h... more

Cuts must ‘protect economic growth’
The government has been called on to protect economic growth in its forthcoming spending review by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The CBI has called for key areas such as infrastructure and education to be prioritised in order to help the economy's ability to grow. The spending review is due to be published on October 20th and the review will target £32bn in cuts every year. ... more

Banks not passing on rate cuts
High street banks have not been passing on base rate cuts in full to household borrowers, according to the Bank of England. The Bank's quarterly bulletin found that the interest rate charged on some loans has actually risen. This may be due to the borrowing cost of banks themselves - which has not fallen as steeply as base rates - and higher charges because of higher default risk as well as ... more