Business News Round Up (03/12/2024)
UK SMEs unaware of international growth opportunities
Amid mounting uncertainty about the future of the European project, entrepreneurs across the continent seem to be less inclined to buying their way into new markets, according to a new report. Surveying business owners in the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany and the UK, researchers from Marktlink found that an average of 60% would prefer to sell to a domestic party. Meanwhile, only 10% would prefer to sell to an international party. While it might be assumed UK businesses would be least-open to cross-border transactions, following the complication of Brexit, the 8% reported there was actually second-highest behind Belgium – at 17%. Meanwhile, entrepreneurs in the Netherlands were the most resistant, at 6%. The report found that 52% of UK SME owners expect their companies to become more attractive to foreign buyers and investors, indicating an optimistic outlook toward the attractiveness of the UK economy and a latent interest in international engagement.
https://www.consultancy.uk/news/38936/uk-smes-unaware-of-international-growth-opportunities
Scotland’s economic forecast weakens – but Edinburgh and Glasgow set to buck trend
Scotland’s economy recorded strong growth in the first half of 2024, broadly keeping pace with the UK, but there are signs that growth is slowing in the second half of the year. The latest EY ITEM Club Scottish Forecast revealed that gross value added (GVA) should expand by 0.7% over the course of 2024; slightly below the UK average of 0.9%. Scotland’s growth is expected to pick up in 2025 (1.3%) and 2026 (1.4%). However, the forecast is weaker than last quarter, with Scotland continuing to lag UK growth over the forecast period. Scotland’s economic growth in the first half of this year was broad-brushed, with contributions from production sectors as well as service sectors. However, the rapid growth in largely consumer-facing sectors recorded in the first quarter was not sustained in the second – and construction has struggled.
https://www.insider.co.uk/news/scotlands-economic-forecast-weakens-edinburgh-34230013
High-growth innovators flock to Manchester as city projected to retain title of UK’s fastest growing city
Manchester’s bid to fulfil expectations that it will be the fastest growing UK city in 2024 have been handed a boost with 142 high-growth businesses announcing office and lab openings or expansions in innovation hubs across both the city and in Cheshire this year. Earlier this year, leading UK economic forecasting group, EY ITEM Club, projected that Manchester would become the UK’s fastest growing city, with an expected GVA uptick of 1.8%, citing the region’s focus on attracting talent to value-add sectors as an example for other cities to follow. The coming years are also projected to see the city and surrounding region continue their strong growth trajectory, with GVA in 2026 expected to be £2bn higher than it was in 2022.
Corporate activity driven higher by Budget concerns
Corporate activity picked up ahead of the Budget as advisers and clients sought to complete deals ahead of the Chancellor’s October budget. The corporate and M&A team at law firm Harper Macleod said it advised on 42 transactions in October amid speculation of changes in capital gains tax and other taxes. Capital gains did not rise as high as anticipated but transactional activity has remained high in November with many businesses preparing for further reductions in relief from CGT in 2025 and 2026.Donnie Munro, Harper Macleod’s senior partner and head of the corporate, commercial and regulatory team, said: “From now until the end of this tax year, it’s likely we’ll continue to see the wave of business sales and disposals which we started to see since Labour’s General Election victory, perhaps even earlier, as business owners anticipated a hike in taxes to fund the rebuilding of public services.”