Business News Round Up (08/06/2021)
‘Five-day office week will become the norm again’
The five-day office week could become the norm again within two years, the Centre for Cities think tank has told the BBC. A blend of home and office work is expected to be popular while the UK recovers from the pandemic. But some analysts then anticipate a shift back to pre-Covid working patterns for many. Currently, people who can work from home are still advised to do so. However, that is likely to change if the government ends all social distancing restrictions on 21 June. “I expect we will see three or four days a week in the office as the UK recovers,” Paul Swinney, director of policy and research at Centre for Cities, told Radio 5 Live’s Wake Up to Money programme. “Over the longer term, I’m quite hopeful that we will see people return five days a week. The reason for that is, one of the benefits of being in the office is having interactions with other people, coming up with new ideas and sharing information.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-57339105
UK hospitality and retail facing ‘economic long COVID’
UK business chiefs made a fresh plea for government action on rent debts and hardship caused by COVID-19 shutdowns on Monday afternoon in London. Kate Nicholls, chief executive at UK Hospitality said at a Treasury select committee hearing on the economic impact of the pandemic that the hospitality sector is facing “economic long COVID” as a result of the hefty debt burdens businesses have been left with. Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), Nicholls and Mark Tanzer, chief executive at ABTA – the Travel Association stressed their concerns about tapered support and uncertainty around reopening. “It’s fair to say that the measures put in place have not always been sufficient to weather a sustained hit on revenue,” said Nicholls, noting that average hospitality monthly costs are between £10,000 and £20,000, while the average government support was £3,000 per month.
Construction growth at seven-year high, but inflation fears remain
Construction output growth reached a seven-year high during May, but concerns remain about a combination of surging demand for construction materials and severe supply shortages both sparking a 24-year high level of cost inflation. May’s monthly PMI data indicated that the UK construction sector remained on a strong recovery path, with output growth reaching its strongest since September 2014 – and new order volumes increased at the fastest pace since the survey began just over 24 years ago. But input cost inflation was also at a survey-record high during May, reflecting a surge in demand for construction materials and severe supply shortages. At 64.2 in May, up from 61.6 in April, the seasonally adjusted IHS Markit/CIPS UK Construction PMI Total Activity Index registered above the 50.0 no-change value for the fourth consecutive month and signalled the strongest rate of output growth for just under seven years.
Bute Island Foods acquired by Canada-based Saputo
Bute Island Foods, which makes vegan cheese alternative Sheese, has been acquired by Canadian dairy company Saputo whose labels include Cathedral City, Country Life, and Utterly Butterly. Saputo, which is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, paid £109 million to buy both Bute Island Foods and a factory owned by Wisconsin Specialty Protein in Reedsburg. The deal is regarded as an indication of growing interest in the vegan food category. Bute Island Foods, founded in 1988, sells its plant-based cheese alternatives online, through independent retailers and via major supermarket groups including Sainsbury’s and Waitrose. The new owner has pledged £2.9 million over five years to support community initiatives on the island as part of its wider commitment to invest 1% of its pre-tax profits each year in community programmes and organisations.