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Business News England
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Welcome to our round up of the latest business news for our clients for 24th February 2025.
Please contact us if you want to talk with out team of experienced Stoke-on-Trent accountants about how these updates affect your business. We are here to support you!
Inflation figures for January 2025 were released last week and showed a surprising jump to 3.0%, up from 2.5% in December.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the largest upward contribution to the change came from transport, and food and non-alcoholic beverages.
The upward pressure in transport costs came from air fares and motor fuels. Traditionally air fares increase in December before falling in January, however January 2025 saw the smallest January fall since January 2020.
Many businesses are feeling the pinch of increasing costs and news that inflation is rising may not be good news. Some economists believe that the rise will not affect the Bank of England’s plans for the interest base rate – the Bank has already forecast that inflation will increase to 3.7% later this year. However, regardless of this, inflation can squeeze profit margins and put a strain on cash flow.
However, inflation doesn’t have to derail your business. Read on to see how with the right strategies you can mitigate the impact and even uncover new opportunities.
Latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that average wages are continuing to grow faster than inflation. After adjusting for consumer price inflation (CPI), wages rose 3.4% between October and December 2024 when compared with the same period in 2023.
Unemployment figures also appear to be encouraging, with the UK’s unemployment rate remaining at 4.4%. However, the ONS has cautioned that the response rate to its survey was low. So, these figures may not reflect the true position.
With the upcoming increases to national minimum wage and employers national insurance, it seems likely that pay growth will reduce over coming months. Many businesses are reporting that they plan to reduce their workforce due to the increased costs.
Beginning last week (17 February), Local Authorities were able to begin awarding a 40% reduction in business rates bills to film studios. The tax relief is aimed at boosting the film industry in the UK and contributing towards more box office hits being made.
The creative industries sector employs 2.4 million people and provides £124.6 billion to the UK economy. The government hopes to boost both these figures by providing the relief. The Film Studio Business Rates Relief will be available to eligible studios in England until 2034. Where applicable, it can be backdated to 1 April 2024.
Eligible film studios should not need to apply for the relief, but should be awarded it automatically by their Local Authority.
According to a survey of 2,000 businesses carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), just over a third are planning redundancies or to recruit fewer people ahead of National Insurance and Minimum Wage rises this April.
42% of those surveyed have said they will increase prices to cover the increased costs. 25% are looking at cancelling or downscaling plans for investing or expanding their business.
The chief executive of the CIPD, Peter Cheese, said these were the “most significant downward changes in employer sentiment we’ve seen in the last 10 years, outside of the pandemic.”
In separately conducted research, the Federation of Small Business also found that confidence among small businesses has dropped to its lowest point in 10 years when the Covid pandemic is excluded.
These surveys join a growing chorus of concern from businesses. The British Chamber of Commerce reported last month that a survey of almost 5,000 members suggested that confidence is at its lowest level for two years.
Amidst such a pessimistic view, how can you and your team maintain confidence?
Topps Tiles, which is the largest tile specialist in the UK, purchased 30 CTD Tiles stores as part of a deal after CTD entered administration in August 2024. CTD was previously the second largest specialist tile retailer in the UK, so this was a sizeable acquisition for the tile world.
However, following complaints, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has raised competition concerns in 4 areas of the UK: Dorking, Edinburgh, Inverness and Aberdeen. The reduction in competition in these areas could lead to worse deals and service for the customers and businesses there.
While numbers don’t lie, it’s well known that they can be manipulated to fit a story. Can you tell when it’s happening?
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) are running a webinar that they describe as eye-opening and will do a deep dive into the world of statistical misuse.
It will look at how the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) investigates statistical misuse, how the ONS publish statistics in different formats to provide clarity and transparency, and how the ONS works to make sure its statistics are fairly and accurately reported in the news.
The webinar is an interactive session that will be held on Microsoft Teams.
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