Business News Round Up (01/12/2022)
Small office demand pushes lettings to new high
Companies downsizing to smaller, refurbished offices have pushed up the number of lettings in Glasgow to a nine year high, according to Savills. It said completions in the first three quarters of 2022 reached 84, which represents the greatest number of deals seen at this point of the year since its records began in 2013. The next best year was 2019, which recorded 82 deals over the same period. The increased activity has seen occupiers prepared to pay higher rents in exchange for well designed, energy efficient space already ‘fitted out’ and including furniture to allow occupiers to move in immediately, says Savills. The majority – 65% – of deals in 2022 are sub 3,000 sq ft floorplates reflecting further evidence Savills says that occupiers are choosing the most efficient options – higher quality, smaller offices. The level of demand sees refurbished Grade B offices that offer smaller floorplates letting well, with deals at 24 St Vincent Place, The Ink Building and The Beacon highlighting this trend, Savills reports. Rents on this style of small refurbishment are now achieving up to £30 per sq ft with headline rents for brand new Grade A offices about to reach £36 per sq ft.
Further falls in NW business confidence, latest barometer reading shows
Business confidence in the North West fell 19 points during November to nine per cent, according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking – conducted between November 1-15, before the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement announcement on November 17. Companies in the region reported lower confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, down 15 points at 18%. When taken alongside their optimism in the economy, down 24 points to one per cent, this gives a headline confidence reading of nine per cent. North West businesses identified their top target areas for growth in the next six months as evolving their offering (42%), investing in their teams (39%) and investing in sustainability (35%). The Business Barometer, which questions 1,200 businesses monthly, provides early signals about UK economic trends both regionally and nationwide. A net balance of 17% of North West businesses expect to increase staff levels over the next year, down 29 points on past month. Overall, UK business confidence fell five points during November, but remained positive at 10%. Firms’ outlook on their future trading prospects was down two points to 25%, and their optimism in the wider economy dropped four points to minus two per cent. Despite a seven-point dip, UK businesses remained positive about hiring intentions with 14% of firms aiming to create new jobs in the next 12 months.
New Medicines Centre brings 100 high quality jobs and £200m investment into Glasgow City Region
UK technology innovation organisation CPI has today opened its Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Centre at the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS) in Renfrewshire, bringing 100 high-quality jobs and an initial estimated £200 million of technology investment into Glasgow City Region. The Centre has been supported by £88 million investment from public and private partners and will bring world-leading science and technology expertise under one roof to help accelerate state-of-the-art solutions in medicines development and manufacturing. Building on Scotland’s growing reputation as a global hub for life sciences and manufacturing innovation, the Centre will also further enhance international investment into these key sectors. Its ‘Grand Challenge’ business model follows the UK Life Sciences Strategy roadmap, combining ideas from the pharma and technology sectors to help tackle issues such as increasing the pace and personalisation of medicine production and enhancing sustainability across manufacturing processes. The Centre is situated next to the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland in the heart of AMIDS. It has been developed through a unique collaboration between CPI and 23 partner organisations from across the pharma sector, business, academia, and government. These include the University of Strathclyde, Scottish Enterprise, and UK Research and Innovation. Global pharmaceutical firms AstraZeneca and GSK are also among the Centre’s founding partners. Other partners include Pfizer, Novartis and Alnylam, as well as business advisers PwC, and technology leaders Siemens and Applied Materials. Scottish Enterprise has contributed £16 million towards the facility.
Recruitment industry adds £43bn to UK economy says latest REC report
The staffing and recruitment industry has added £43bn to the UK economy in 2021, with agencies placing 23m people as businesses began their recovery from the pandemic. According to the latest Recruitment Industry Status Report (RISR) published today by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC), the recruitment and staffing industry contributed £42.9bn of direct Gross Value Added (GVA) to the UK economy last year. This marked a 21.7% increase on 2020 and a rise on pre-pandemic levels. The report said 79.5% of the recruitment enterprises were micro-businesses with fewer than 10 employees, with 82% having less than £1m in turnover. In contrast, 180 firms, or 1.6% of the total, have turnover of over £50m, with 470 businesses employing 250-plus employees. A drop in the total number of temporary employment agencies from 2021 to 2022 was driven by a reduction in the number of businesses with more than £100k in turnover, the report said. For both temporary and permanent staffing agencies, there were increases in the number of businesses with a turnover less than £50k.