Business News Round Up (29/04/2024)
UK business links with European Union continue to shrink post-Brexit
Britain’s business relationship with the European Union continues to decline, post-Brexit. New figures show that the number of UK businesses trading with the EU has fallen to a three-year low of 232,309 in the year ending December 31, 2023, down 4% from 242,029 businesses in 2022. Chartered accountants and business adviser, Hazlewoods, has studied the data and said that, since Brexit in 2016, more businesses have faced increased difficulty in trading with the EU due to ‘red tape’ and tariffs on trade. The UK Government has recently announced charges of up to £145 for consignments of EU plant and animal products imported from the EU from the end of April 2024. This is expected to further discourage trade as smaller businesses face increased costs, said Hazlewoods. The number of businesses exporting to the EU only fell to just 17,776 in 2023, compared with 17,960 in the previous year.
Fall in job vacancies lifts expectations of rate cut
Advertised job vacancies fell again last month in a further sign of a slowing labour market that could encourage the Bank of England to cut the cost of borrowing. Jobs search engine Adzuna said 862,294 vacancies were advertised last month, down 0.46% month on month and by 17.41% over the year. There are now 1.87 jobseekers per vacancy, the highest since August 2021 and up from the 1.49 level recorded in 2023. Vacancies peaked at more than a million in 2022, giving potential recruits more power to negotiate higher pay deals, which in turn has contributed to rising inflation. Trade & Construction vacancies were among the sectors that suffered the biggest fall, down by 8.24% according to the latest figures. Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna, said the labour market was becoming a “difficult” environment for jobseekers.
https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2024/04/fall-in-job-vacancies-lifts-expectations-of-rate-cut/
Over half a million UK businesses fighting for survival as UK economy stagnates
The level of UK businesses under ‘significant’ financial distress has jumped by 30.8% to 554,554 in the past year, according to new research from accounting firm Begbies Traynor. The firm’s latest ‘Red Flag Research’ notes this deterioration now affects all 22 sectors covered by this latest research. Additionally, the much more serious ‘critical’ financial distress has leapt 20.1% compared to Q1 2023, with 40,174 UK businesses affected. Despite a 15.4% fall in critical financial distress compared to Q4 2023 company insolvencies remain at historically elevated levels as servicing debt at higher interest rates takes its toll. With many companies in ‘critical’ financial distress expected to enter insolvency over the course of the next 12 months, the picture in the Construction, Real Estate, Financial Services and Support Services sectors is particularly concerning as nearly 50% (c.20,000 businesses) of the companies in ‘critical’ financial distress are represented by these sectors.
UK cash-for-bottle deposit scheme delayed until 2027
The UK’s bottle deposit and return scheme (DRS) will be delayed until 2027, four years later than planned. Ministers blamed the Welsh government for wanting to include glass in the scheme – which the UK government opposes. Charities said the delay “makes a mockery” of the government’s environmental commitments. The beleaguered scheme would reward consumers recycling bottles with money or vouchers. All four UK nations have been working together to try and agree a joint approach to the schemes, with public consultations in 2019 and 2021. At first, the Scottish and Welsh governments wanted to include glass in the scheme, in addition to plastic and metal. Both devolved governments have plans for their own deposit return schemes, which would integrate with the national plans. But the UK government disagreed, saying including glass would be too complicated and expensive.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-68898109