Business News Round Up (18/04/2023)
Record number of people in work in Scotland
A record number of people in Scotland are in work, according to the latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The quarterly data released on Tuesday showed there were 2.4 million workers on payrolls across Scotland – an increase of 50,000 from February 2020. Scotland’s unemployment rate fell by 0.1% between December 2022 and February 2023 to 3% – the lowest it has been since records began in 1992. Rates of economic activity fell slightly to 75.7% of people aged 16 to 64, from 76.1% in the last quarter. And the percentage of economically inactive people rose slightly from 21.6% between November 2022 and January 2023 to 22% between December 2022 and March 2023. Scotland is also faring better with unemployment compared to the rest of the UK. Compared with other UK countries, Scotland’s employment rate was second highest behind England and the unemployment rate was the second lowest at 3%. The UK average employment rate was 3.8%. Wellbeing Economy Secretary Neil Gray commented: “The Scottish Government is delivering on the national strategy for economic transformation to create a fairer, wealthier and greener country, while ensuring everyone can thrive in a diverse and inclusive workforce. Our policies are supporting the creation of more high-quality jobs and we have increased the number of people earning at least the real, living wage.”
https://www.insider.co.uk/news/record-number-people-work-scotland-29737319
Office rents rising amid squeeze on ‘quality’ space
Prospective office tenants are urging landlords to accelerate refurbishment of older property in Edinburgh amid a chronic shortage in supply of new premises. A strong start to the year, led by the technology, media, and telecommunications sector, has added to the pressure on space and is forcing up rents. This is also pushing more occupiers to out-of-town locations. City offices are currently under offer at £42.50 per sq. ft. and 76% of the 370,000 sq ft of space scheduled for 2023 delivery is already pre-let, according to Knight Frank. It predicts there will be further rental growth before the end of the year. The consultancy found that the first quarter of 2023 saw another 90,872 sq. ft. of office take-up, excluding “regears” or renegotiated deals. While slightly lower than last year’s 100,856 sq. ft., this pushed the city’s vacancy rate down to 8.06% for all grades and below 1% for Grade A space. Simon Capaldi, office agency partner at Knight Frank Edinburgh, said: “The imbalance between the supply and demand of office space in Edinburgh is reaching chronic levels. While there is new space in the development pipeline, the vast majority of it has been pre-let and only refurbished product is available until later in 2024.”
https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2023/04/office-rents-rising-amid-squeeze-on-quality-space/
Unemployment rises slightly while earnings continue to fail to keep pace with prices
The rate of UK unemployment rose to 3.8% in the three months to February, up from 3.7% in the previous three months. Vacancies fell by 47,000 over the same period. The ONS said this reflects “uncertainty across industries, as survey respondents continue to cite economic pressures as a factor in holding back on recruitment”. Meanwhile wage growth continues to be outstripped by soaring costs according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics. Total pay including bonuses down by 4.1% when inflation is taken into account despite a 5.9% rise in earnings. Average pay including bonuses fell by 3.0% in the year to December 2022 to February 2023, or 2.3% excluding bonuses. Ben Harrison, Director of the Work Foundation at Lancaster University, said: “This is another challenging set of figures for workers who are seeing their wages fall in real terms for the 15th consecutive month. With inflation still high at 10.4%, it is vital public sector industrial disputes are resolved as quickly as possible to ensure those on low and insecure incomes are better able to deal with the cost of living crisis.
Scotland’s third sector leaders supported to accelerate circular economy plans
Leading responsible finance provider, Social Investment Scotland (SIS) is inviting leaders from Scotland’s social enterprise and third sector to join a new coaching initiative designed to develop Scotland’s circular economy. Funded by Zero Waste Scotland, Circular Economy 360+ is a programme of online and in-person training that will help organisations to embrace planet-friendly and sustainable principles. The programme is free-to-attend and will give leaders an opportunity to develop plans for growth that could see their social impact increase through circular activities and projects. The initiative is suitable for organisations already involved in circular economy activities, such as reusing materials, reducing waste and recycling, as well as social enterprises and charities with brand new ideas for activities that could be launched in the coming months. Circular Economy 360+ builds on a video and webinar series, delivered by SIS last year, which involved circular economy experts from across the world. With space for up to 15 participants – plus unlimited registrations for the online sessions – coaching will cover areas such as policy, legislation, and consumer behaviour, as well as one-to-one support to implement next steps. The course is the first of its kind, supporting purpose-driven circular economy organisations and projects to develop strategies aligned with key environmental policies.