Business News Round Up (25/02/2020)
Scottish life sciences ‘on track’ for £8 billion turnover by 2025
The life sciences sector is set to contribute £8 billion to the Scottish economy by 2025, as annual turnover in the sector soared by 90% from 2010 to 2017 to reach £6.5 billion, according to new Scottish Government figures. The report found that gross value added increased by 48% while company employment rose by 20% over the same period, employing 41,000 people across more than 770 organisations. The number of companies has also increased 19% between 2010 and 2017.
Manchester to remain one of England’s strongest performers – EY
Manchester is to remain one of England’s strongest performing cities, with annual employment growth the highest in the UK and Gross Value Added (GVA) expected to rise, according to a new report. The EY Regional Economic Forecast is predicting an average employment growth of 1.4%, the equivalent of 25,000 new jobs between 2020 and 2023. It’s GVA growth is also forecast to grow 2.2% per year. Manchester’s buoyant outlook is underpinned by its private service sectors, most notably, its professional, scientific and technical and administrative and support service sectors, which are forecast to experience the fastest increase over the period.
Scottish commercial property market shows resilience and growth in 2019
2019 saw the most commercial property transactions in Scotland at 4,667 as the total value of sales grew for the third consecutive year, according to new analysis from the Scottish Property Federation. At £3.37 billion, the value of commercial property sales in 2019 hit its highest annual total since 2015. The total value of sales increased by £136 million (4%) compared to the total for 2018. The number of commercial property transactions has increased every year since 2012, with 139 (3%) more sales taking place in 2019 than in the previous year.
Insolvencies in North West soared by a third last year
The number of companies in the North West entering administration increased by a third in 2019, according to new analysis from KPMG. The research shows that 283 businesses in the North West went into administration in 2019, compared to 213 in the previous year. The increase is significantly higher than national levels, in which a 5% rise in insolvencies was recorded. The final quarter of the year saw business administrations in the North West fall by 16 per cent compared to the previous quarter, with 72 administrations between October and December.