Business News Round Up (16/03/2021)
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More than 1,200 Scottish chain stores closed in 2020
More than 1,200 chain stores closed in Scotland last year, largely as a result of changing consumer habits, according to a new study. PwC research compiled by the Local Data Company (LDC) found there were 1,264 closures and 612 openings in 2020. The figures did not include stores temporarily shut down because of lockdown restrictions. PwC said the study highlighted the long-term impact of “digital migration” in the retail industry. But it also warned that the full impact of the Covid pandemic may not yet have been felt, given the extent of government support offered to businesses over the past year. According to the latest figures, the net change in store numbers, at -4.1%, was the worst performance in recent years. PwC said that in total, there were now 2,500 fewer chain stores in Scotland than at the end of 2015. Last year, there were 883 chain store closures on the high street leading to a net loss of 432 stores – a net loss of -3.5%.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-56408065
Hospitality to help ‘reignite’ UK economy
Hospitality can play a critical role in rebooting the UK economy if it receives the necessary levels of support from government. This is the headline takeaway from the latest CGA Business Leaders’ Survey, which found that 81% of hospitality business leaders believed the sector could help significantly boost the UK economy as Covid-19 recedes. Moreover, 65% agreed that hospitality would be key in job creation, also with the ability to bring together and help repair pandemic-battered communities and town centres. With the UK vaccine rollout ahead of plan, there has also been a marked upturn in the confidence of leaders around the outlook for their businesses. The number now optimistic about the next 12 months has risen to 54%, against just 27% in November 2020, across a sector that has seen 12,000 licenced premises close since December 2019. This uptick in optimism appears to be well grounded, with 59% of survey respondents saying that they plan to open new sites in 2021, and 75% saying they are or will be looking to recruit new staff, predicting that staffing levels will rise to 90% of pre-pandemic levels by December 2021.
Oil and gas industry warns £3bn lost investment during pandemic could threaten green recovery
The oil and gas industry has warned that the UK’s energy transition could be under threat unless the government can provide more support for the sector. OGUK, the representative body for the UK offshore oil and gas industry, has stated that securing and sustaining investment in the sector is now critical to help the UK quickly realise a net-zero future. Its 2021 Business Outlook showed that the industry is facing a period of extreme uncertainty as it grapples with the after-effects of the pandemic, which led to a significant decline in offshore activity levels – with overall levels of expenditure falling by more than a quarter in the last year alone. Despite the challenges of the coronavirus and the economic downturn, production from UK waters still managed to meet around 70% of the country’s oil and gas needs in 2020. The report also noted some early signs of improved sentiment emerging, with new investors continuing to be attracted by the remaining potential of the North Sea.
https://www.insider.co.uk/news/oil-gas-industry-warns-3bn-23734284
Post-Brexit UK to reshape its foreign policy
The government is pledging to reshape an “outdated international system” to better protect the UK’s interests and values, in a year-long review of post-Brexit foreign and defence policy. New alliances should be formed as the UK shifts focus towards Indo-Pacific countries such as India, Japan, and Australia, it says. The review also paves the way for an increase in nuclear warheads. Labour says the strategy will leave the UK “woefully unprepared”. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will later detail the results of the Integrated Review of security, defence, development, and foreign policy, which the government says will address “the challenges and opportunities the UK faces in a more competitive world”. They will include a White House-style situation room built in the Cabinet Office as well as a new counter-terrorism operations centre intended to improve the speed of response to terrorist incidents.