Business News Articles

SMEs not monitoring their website
Just under half of UK companies have no method of measuring whether their website is effective or not, according to research released by web hosting firm Fasthosts. ... more

UK 'emerging from recession'
The UK economy has started to emerge from the recession but future growth will be fragile, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The CBI predicts that GDP will grow by 0.3% between July and September and by 0.4% in the final quarter of the year, but the increase of VAT in January will lead to a slowing of growth in the first quarter of next year to 0.1%. "The outlook is i... more

Mortgage approvals rise 81%
The number of mortgages approved by the major banks in August increased by 81% from the same month a year ago, according to the British Bankers' Association (BBA). There were 38,095 mortgages approved for house purchases in August by the major banks, compared with 21,001 in August last year. "The main high street banks' mortgage lending has stabilised in a market where other lenders are larg... more

60% of Brits want to start own firm
Entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the UK despite the recession with two-thirds of the population having ambitions to start their own business, according to a survey by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). The survey suggests that 60% of Brits would like to be their own boss and that the entrepreneurial spirit is even stronger amongst 25-34 year olds, with three-q... more

Small firms investing in their websites
Small businesses are investing in their websites in a bid to combat the economic downturn, according to research by Amplify Research. The survey found that 43% of small companies in the UK are now investing in improving their websites in a bid to increase online sales. Just under 30% of respondents said that social networking sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are good business-to-... more

Pound hits 5 month euro low
The pound has dropped to its lowest level against the euro since April as concerns are raised that UK public debt levels may not be sustainable. The pound also dropped to its lowest level in three weeks against the dollar as the Bank of England cautioned that foreign investors may not be as willing to purchase UK assets. Official figures released last week showed that the UK's public sector ... more

Small firm inflation rises 2.2%
The cost of running a small business rose by 2.2% in the second quarter of the year, ending six months of deflation, according to research released in the latest Business Inflation Guide by MORE TH>N BUSINESS. The guide showed that prices increased in 13 of the 20 small business expenditure categories, including a 3.5% increase in labour costs and a 3.2% rise in raw material costs. However, ... more

Government must ‘cut red tape’
Red tape imposed on businesses must be cut to help firms survive the recession, according to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). New rules - such as extra employment laws - have cost UK companies £77bn to implement over the last decade, according to the BCC. "The UK's 4.5m private businesses, not the public sector, will lead this country's economic recovery. To make this happen, future ... more

Scrappage scheme ‘must be extended’
Carmakers are calling on the UK government to continue the car scrappage scheme, which has boosted sales of new cars. There are concerns that sales will fall sharply once the scheme - which provides a £2,000 discount provided equally by the government and the car industry - runs out of money. The government has set aside £300m for the scheme of which over half has already been spent and it... more

Business failures decline
Business failures have fallen to the lowest level since the start of the recession, according to figures released by global information services company Experian. The research revealed that 0.09% of UK businesses failed during August this year, the lowest number of monthly failures so far in 2009. Compared to July the total number of insolvencies fell by 23% in August to a total of 1,796. â€... more