Newbusiness Latest News

Price comparison sites criticised

editor — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:47:10 +0100

Some insurance comparison websites contain out-of-date information and can mislead customers, according to an investigation by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). As part of its research, the body found cases where compulsory excess levels were either incorrect or not included in the quote, incorrect pricing and sites only offering a limited number of product features.

Interest rates kept at 5%

editor — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:34:13 +0100

The Bank of England has resisted the temptation to cut interest rates for the second month in a row and kept rates on hold at 5%. The decision was made despite evidence that the manufacturing, property and retail sectors are continuing to struggle in the current economic climate.

Households feel the squeeze

editor — Thu, 08 May 2008 09:55:03 +0100

The percentage of household income that is spent on food, bills and other essential items has risen from 25% to 31% over the past six years, according to research conducted by Capital Economics. Rising interest rates in recent years coupled with high food and energy prices were largely to blame, the consultancy said, although mortgage payments were likely to fall from 10.7% to 10% by 2009 as the credit crunch eased off and interest rates fell.

Sharp fall in UK manufacturing

editor — Thu, 08 May 2008 09:46:43 +0100

UK manufacturing output fell by its fastest rate in six months in March, data from the Office for National Statistics has revealed. Output fell by 0.5% after two months of surprisingly strong growth, which took the quarterly figure for the first three months of 2008 to 0.3% above the last quarter for 2007.

One in 10 drunk at work

editor — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:05:19 +0100

One in 10 employees admits to having been drunk at their desk and one in three employees has been to work with a hangover, according to a study by Norwich Union Healthcare. The research found that 85% of employees who had been hungover or drunk at work said it affected their performance, with 42% feeling sleepy, 36% having difficulty in concentrating, 35% being less productive than usual and 25% doing the minimum amount of work possible and going home as soon as possible.

Slump in office space demand

editor — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:44:26 +0100

Demand for office space in London fell dramatically in the first three months of 2008 as the impact of the credit crunch took hold of the commercial property sector. The prime central London index – produced by property firm Savills – fell by 1.5% in the first quarter of 2008 on top of a 2% drop in the last three months of 2007.

Crackdown on illegal workers

editor — Tue, 06 May 2008 10:34:11 +0100

A growing number of businesses are being prosecuted for employing illegal workers, according to research by the BBC. The organisation reports that 137 businesses were caught breaching new rules in January and February this year, 10 times the figure for the whole of 2007.

Post shake-up 'no help to SMEs'

editor — Tue, 06 May 2008 10:21:50 +0100

Deregulation of the postal industry has brought no significant benefits to small businesses, according to an independent review of the sector commissioned by the government. While larger companies had benefited from greater choice, lower prices and higher standards of service by using new bulk mail services, small firms were still reliant on the Royal Mail, the initial findings of the review suggest.

Banks’ view ‘too pessimistic’

editor — Fri, 02 May 2008 08:46:00 +0100

The extent of the losses banks expect to make from the current credit crunch may be exaggerated, the Bank of England has said. But in its financial stability report, the Bank also warned that by refusing to lend money to even credit-worthy individuals or each other, financial institutions could turns fears of a financial crisis into reality.

Grocery inquiry findings criticised

editor — Thu, 01 May 2008 10:04:49 +0100

Small business groups have blasted the findings of the Competition Commission into the health of the grocery sector. Despite a committee of MPs estimating that 2,000 small shops go out of business each year, the inquiry failed to come up with any remedies that would boost independent retailers suffering at the hands of the big supermarkets.

Small firms’ public sector bid

editor — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:50:13 +0100

Small businesses will get free access to thousands of public sector contract opportunities under a new trial being launched by the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. For May, June and July, the www.supply2gov.uk website will allow new registrants to access contracts out to tender with a value of £100,000 or less.

Retail sales slump during April

editor — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:13:12 +0100

A combination of the economic downturn, an early Easter and poor weather meant April was the worst month on the high street since November 2005, according to the CBI. The Distributives Trades Survey revealed that sales of house-related products such as DIY materials and electrical items fell from the same month last year, although those figures were boosted by the Easter bank holiday and better weather.

Norwich Union brand to disappear

editor — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 09:50:39 +0100

Insurance giant Aviva has announced it is to scrap the Norwich Union brand in a bid to create a single identity across international markets. The move will spell the end for the brand, which was created in 1797 when the company was set up in Norwich.

BT seeks firms for hotspots

editor — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:30:39 +0100

Organisations using BT Business Total Broadband are now able to turn their BT Business hub into a BT Openzone wireless hotspot at no extra cost, meaning anyone visiting their premises can now log onto a separate secure channel to check email, use the internet and make VoIP calls. “This is something totally new for UK businesses of any size, from the smallest start-up to larger multi-site businesses and all those in between,” said Bill Murphy, managing director, BT Business.

Annual house price growth falls

editor — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:21:56 +0100

The annual rate of house price growth has fallen for the seventh month in a row, figures from the Land Registry have revealed. The annual increase in March was just 3.6%, compared to 5.3% in February, while prices fell by 0.4% in month-on-month figures.

Credit crunch hits top entrepreneurs

editor — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:37:18 +0100

Britain’s wealthiest entrepreneurs have seen their fortunes dip due to the recent economic downturn, according to The Sunday Times Rich List. The list revealed that Sir Richard Branson’s wealth had dropped by £400m to £2.7bn as the value of his Virgin empire decreased, while retail magnate Sir Philip Green’s fortune fell by more than 10% to £4.3bn.

Simpler system for train tickets

editor — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 09:57:46 +0100

A new rail ticketing system designed to make it simple for travellers to understand the types of ticket on offer is due to come into force from May. The new system, brought in by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC), will feature only three ticket options: Advance, Off-peak and Anytime.

FSB launches VoIP initiative

editor — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 10:23:09 +0100

The Federation of Small Businesses has launched an initiative to provide its members with a business-class VoIP (voice over internet protocol) telephony service free of charge. In a partnership with telecoms company Coms, all 210,000 FSB members will receive a VoIP telecoms account where they will be able to contact each other free of charge.

Banks warned on identity fraud

editor — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 09:54:28 +0100

The Financial Services Authority has called on banks and other financial institutions to do more to tackle the threat of identity fraud. The organisation’s research found that nearly half of the 39 companies polled failed to give staff training in data security, with small and medium-sized firms the worst culprits.

Bosses warned on pregnancy stance

editor — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:09:43 +0100

The majority of company bosses make an assessment on whether an employee is likely to get pregnant before deciding whether to offer them a job, according to a survey by Employment Law Advisory Services (ELAS). Over half (52%) said they took factors such as age and whether a candidate had just got married into account when recruiting and 76% of managers said they would not hire someone if they knew they would get pregnant within six months of starting the new job.