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FIGURES SHOW NEED FOR ACTION Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that UK gross domestic product (GDP) and total exports dropped by 7.8% and 10.3% respectively in February compared to the same month last year.
to spur hiring, ending a debilitating late payment crisis that has worsened through lockdowns, and taking innovative approaches to emergency debt to realise meaningful economic value.
Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) national chairman Mike Cherry said: “If you’d asked small business owners at this time last year about Covid-linked disruption they wouldn’t have dreamed it would be continuing so far into the future. These stark figures are a reminder that this lockdown needs to be the last!”
Alongside the effect of the pandemic we have EU transition. International sales are way down on where they were at this time last year. A fifth of small exporters have halted sales to the EU temporarily and some have already given up on selling into the bloc on a permanent basis.
With the vaccine rollout, reopening and a buoyant summer trade predicted in Cornwall, small business confidence has started to improve but a sizeable share of employers are concerned about redundancies with the job retention scheme winding down over the coming months.
The FSB concern here is that unless further action is taken to alleviate the new admin facing exporters, which tend to be our most innovative and profitable firms, we risk losing them all together.
In this ONS update, consumer-facing service businesses were shown to have been especially hard hit and even though there is light at the end of the tunnel, the FSB is urging all shoppers to keep supporting local small firms wherever possible to help boost recovery. The FSB is also asking the Government to now turn to its build back better agenda: cutting the non-wage costs of employment
As a further move to improve export prospects, the FSB is urging policymakers to urgently pull out all the stops to strike ambitious new trade deals, which include small business chapters, with high-growth economies where there’s appetite for UK goods, not least the US. These ONS figures should be treated as a wake-up call and the FSB is calling for action to ensure that Government focusses attention on creating an environment where there can be swift improvement.
A LITTLE BIT OF HELP OPEN TO ALL… You can also visit our online Knowledge Centre firstvoice.fsb.org.uk for help, advice and guidance and find out about our about helpful webinars and podcasts or by visiting our fsb.org.uk/event-calendar where you can find hundreds of free online networking and business support events to attend right across the UK. Covid-19: A4 Printable we are open signs: Printable signs and social media cards to let your customers know that you are open for business are available to download and you can also use our social media images on the fsb.org.uk website to welcome your customers back and let them know you are Covid compliant.
We have created the FSB skills hub to support you with the resources you need to ensure business continuity in the immediate future and for the longer term. Find answers to your legal questions, demystify the digital world, build a robust business model and unlock the potential of FSB membership. fsb.org.uk/skills-hub
FSB Offer for Business Cornwall Magazine Readers at www.fsb.org.uk/join If you want to join FSB after reading this page then please quote BCM30 when you join and save £30!
CONFIDENCE REBOUNDS AS SHOPS RE-OPEN Close to two thirds (58%) of small businesses expect their performance to improve this quarter, and fewer than one in three (31%) expect theirs will worsen, according to the latest FSB study of almost 1,700 business owners. With trading restrictions now easing across England and Wales, the business group reports that its UK SBI confidence measure has risen to +27.3 in Q1 of this year, up from -49.3 last quarter. The index is at its highest level since Q3 2014, when it hit +41.0, and is in positive territory for the first time since Q2 2018. More than half (51%) of those surveyed for the SBI expect their revenues to increase over the coming three months, the highest proportion since the summer of 2015. Fewer than one in four (24%) expect sales to fall – the same figure stood at 84% at this time last year. The majority (53%) aspire to grow their firms over the next 12 months, the highest share since Q3 2019, marking a 22 percentage point jump compared to the same period last year. Such positive news is welcome, although from a trading position of almost nothing going to something it is hardly surprising to see that a more positive outlook is recorded. For those able to resume trading the only way really is up. However, there are many trials left to contend with. As an example, with the job retention scheme starting to wind down over the coming months, one in seven (14%) small firms with staff say they are likely to make some or all of their team redundant this quarter. We must keep our nerve!
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