Business News Articles

New inflation figures announced
A key measure of inflation, the Consumer Prices Index (CPI), has dropped to the lowest level since February 2005, according to the Office for National Statistics. CPI - a measurement of prices for a range of consumer products - declined to an annual rate of 1.6% in August from 1.8% in July, due partly to lower food costs. However, the Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation measure, which includ... more

Barclays most complained about bank
The top five High Street banks have accounted for more than 50% of the complaints received this year by the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Abbey and HSBC received 38,000 complaints combined, with Barclays the worst offender with over 8,000 complaints. The FOS deals with complaints from customers in the financial services industry if... more

FSB: job centres ‘not working’
One in three small businesses find the Jobcentre Plus network ‘ineffective' and believe that it should be reformed, according to research conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). Fewer than 20% of small companies said they used Jobcentre Plus to hire staff, relying instead on advertising and recruitment services. The FSB has called for a dedicated small business manager to be... more

New 'working interviews' trend
The recession has led to an increase in temporary workers and a new trend of ‘working interviews' according to a report released by recruitment firm Crone Corkill. Due to pressure on cashflow small business owners are increasingly likely to hire staff on temporary contracts to ensure that they are the right person for the job and mimise the risk of hiring an unsuitable employee. "Not only ... more

90% of firms confident over survival
Almost 90% of businesses in the UK are confident that their firm will survive the recession, according to research by Clydesdale Bank. The survey revealed that 89% of business managers are confident their company will survive the recession - with almost a third 100% certain they will make it through. Despite the downturn the research also showed that less than a third of companies have seen ... more

SMEs 'risk missing talent'
Small business bosses must ensure that they do more to publicise the benefits of working for small firms or risk missing out on talent, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). Working at a small firm compared to a large organisation has many benefits such as greater flexibility, a greater all-round understanding of the business and often offers a quicker career path. "If you j... more

Manufacturing output rises
Manufacturing output in the UK has risen at its fastest rate in 18 months, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Factory output increased by 0.9% in June from July, helped by a sharp pickup in car production thanks to the government's car scrappage scheme. However, despite the increase manufacturing output is still down 10% from the same month a year ago.... more

Banks imposing new charges
Banks are imposing a range of charges including increasing interest rates and demanding personal guarantees as preconditions for lending to small firms, according to the Forum of Private Business (FPB). With recent research by the FPB revealing that the cost of finance is a major issue for 63% of small firms, and a ‘very serious concern' for 19% of SMEs, new bank charges are a major concern. ... more

FTSE closes at highest rate this year
The FTSE 100 index of Britain's leading shares has closed at the highest level in over a year, leading to hopes that the UK may be climbing out of the recession. The index closed above the key 5,000 level for the first time since September 26th on Tuesday and has now recovered almost 44% from the six-year low that was reached in March this year. The gains follow a raft of good news stories t... more

SMEs urged to apply for Queen’s Award
Small and medium sized companies have been urged to apply for the 2010 Queen's Awards for Enterprise by previous winners that have spoken about the business benefits that winning the award brings. Recent research revealed that 75% of last year's winners experienced a substantial increase in press coverage in the first year alone, 82% a considerable boost in employee engagement and over two thi... more