Business News Articles

Small companies: mediator would help rebuild relations with banks
Small businesses need a go-between to help rebuild ailing relationships with the banks and revive the flagging economy, according to research done by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). Over 70% of respondents commented that a corporate mediator would help to build better relations between banks and small businesses. The research also showed that a third of small companies consider the... more

Fund of £2m available for small software firms in north-east
Over £2m in funding has been released for small firms that work in the software sector in the north-east of England. Regional development agency One North East will provide £2.1m in funding to the North East Business and Innovation Centre (BIC) in Sunderland, which aims to boost the creation and growth of high-tech small businesses. The investment will be used to deliver support to entrepr... more

Passenger numbers at BAA airports declines 11%
Passenger numbers at BAA's seven UK airports declined by 11% in March as the economic crisis combined with a weak pound dissuaded thousands from travelling abroad, according to figures released by BAA. Gatwick was the worst affected airport, with passenger numbers falling 17% compared to figures in March 2008. Stansted and Glasgow airports suffered passenger drops of 15% and 13% respectively. ... more

Eurostar suffers 20% decline in business passengers
Eurostar is experiencing a decline in business travel on its services from London to Paris and Brussels as companies look to save money due to the current economic downturn. Revenue from premium passengers fell by a fifth in the year's first quarter, compared to the first three months of 2008. "There is a limit to what you can do to stimulate demand as business passengers don't travel for fu... more

Quarter of small firms report improvement in market conditions
More small businesses experienced an increase in demand for their services and products than those that saw this decline, according to a survey by the Forum of Private Business (FPB). In the FPB'S monthly economic survey 26% of small firms reported a rise in the market for their goods and services, compared to 23% that experienced a decline. Just over 50% of respondents saw no change. This i... more

Small firms ‘disadvantaged’ regarding public sector contracts
Small and medium-sized businesses are disadvantaged when it comes to winning public sector contracts by complex, expensive and outdated tender processes, according to a new report by House of Commons All Party Parliamentary Small Business Group (APPSBG). The report - supported by ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) - recommends that the government does more to remove barri... more

Small businesses ‘woefully served by energy suppliers’
The energy watchdog Ofgem has published a report outlining new methods of protection for small firms against energy companies. Detailed proposals regarding the banning of automatic roll-over contracts, new standards for business contracts and how transparency will be improved have recently been published by Ofgem. "Our investigation showed that small businesses are being woefully served by e... more

Government should ‘freeze minimum wage’ to help businesses
The government should help businesses by freezing the minimum wage, rather than going ahead with its current plan to convert empty high street shops into social centres, according to the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC). "Freezing the national minimum wage and cutting burdensome regulation, making it easier for firms to employ people, will help our high streets remain vibrant and successful. I... more

Demand for oil expected to drop further
The price of oil stands at just above $50 a barrel as Opec has warned that demand will drop further due to a worldwide decline in retail sales. Opec have predicted that demand will drop by 1.3m barrels per day this year - greater than the 1m barrels per day originally forecast - to average 84m. "In the coming months, the market is expected to remain under pressure from uncertainties in the e... more

New loan fund available for small businesses in the south west
£10m worth of loans has been set up to help small businesses in the south west, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly during the recession. South West Investment Group Capital (SWIG) has released £5m worth of funds for SMEs in Cornwall and the Scilly Isles and a second £5m fund has been set up for firms in the rest of the southwest through the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA) and the ... more