Inflation rises to 2.9%
Inflation in the UK has risen at its fastest annual pace for nine months with the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) reaching 2.9% in December, according to the Office for National Statistics.
This is the biggest ever monthly rise in the annual index since records began and takes the annual rate of CPI – the measure of the average price of consumer goods and services purchased by households – to 2.9% from 1.9% in November.
CPI is now above the Bank of England’s target of 2% for the first time since last May and means that the Bank of England Governor Mervyn King will almost certainly have to write an open letter to the Chancellor when inflation figures for January are released next month.
A large reason for the rise is because VAT was unchanged last month compared with the previous December when the rate was temporary cut to 15%.
The Retail Price Index – which includes mortgage interest payments – increased from 0.3% to 2.4%, its highest level since November 2008.
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Poor customer service costing firms £3bn
Small business owners have been reminded about the importance of customer care with new data released by Oxford Brookes University showing that poor customer service has cost businesses over £3.3bn in the last two years alone.
Substandard treatment has seen companies lose up to 20 million customers in the last two years as around 75% of consumers switched at least one product or service supplier, with 20% citing inadequate customer service.
“Organisations have to work harder than ever to keep their best customers as they have become increasingly discerning and with the rise of price comparison sites it is now much easier to compare and switch products,” said Professor Merlin Stone of Oxford Brookes University.
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Government paying SME invoices late
Over 60% of small and medium-sized businesses are waiting over 30 days for government invoices to be paid, according to new research from credit reference agency Graydon UK.
The data also revealed that 98% of those SMEs questioned that supply government agencies, local government bodies and central government reported that they are still not being paid within the ten day timeframe pledged by Lord Mandelson in October 2008.
Read more: http://www.newbusiness.co.uk/news/government-paying-sme-invoices-late
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Red tape and taxes could cost businesses in the UK £25bn
Over the next four years, the British Chambers of Commerce has warned that job creation will suffer because of a blizzard of new red tape and taxes due to be implemented by 2014.
Eight major employment-related changes are to taker place next year, including the rising of employee national insurance contributions by 1% from April next year, the Equality Bill and the Agency Workers Directive.
“The cost of employing people must be reduced if future governments are serious about giving businesses the freedom to create jobs and drive our economic recovery,” said David Frost, director general of the BCC.
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Support to help you win business in Europe
On 28 December 2009, the member states of the European Union launched the EU GO network – a new gateway for around two thirds of the services sector to do business with ease across the entire EU.
Collectively, small services businesses form a significant part of the UK economy and it is hoped the breaking down of barriers will benefit the UK economy by up to £6 billion per year.
What it means for small UK services businesses
Whether you want to set up in another Member State or just supply your service from the UK to other Member States, the EU GO network should make life easier.
Read more: http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?itemId=5001450660&type=ONEOFFPAGE&site=210
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UK exports hit 13-month high
UK exports in November reached their highest rate in over 13 months, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics.
Exports rose to £20.2bn, the most since October 2008, driven by sales of consumer goods and chemicals.
“A narrowing trade balance is consistent with a rebalancing of the external and internal sectors of the economy and it’s certainly a trend which we hope is maintained over the next couple of years,” said Philip Shaw, an analyst at Investec.
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Contract Killers – Episode 3 – Signing the contract
In the context of dealing with limited companies, and looking at simple contracts (i.e. not those executed as deeds) we will show the steps which you can take to ensure that the correct parties to the contract are set out in the document and that the person signing has authority to sign. After all, it could be a disaster if you had spent all that time negotiating the terms of a contract to find out at a later stage that those carefully negotiated terms were not worth the paper they were written on.
As the reader may remember, Sarah is the chief executive of Pallister Hall Limited and she had recently been negotiating terms with the catering company, Fair Catering, for the provision of catering services at Pallister Hall. Following, some tricky negotiations with Barry, the CEO of Fair Catering, Sarah finalised the terms of the contract and the contract was ready for signature.
Sarah handed the contract to Lisa, the in-house lawyer at Pallister Hall and asked her to have a quick flick through. “Unfortunately”, said Sarah, “the terms are what they are and there’s no further room there for negotiation. Can you just make sure that everything else is okay?”
Continue to read the episode by clicking here.
© Bircham Dyson Bell, Solicitors. For more information please contact PaulVoller@bdb-law.co.uk quoting reference “UKBA”
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Industrial output rises
Industrial production in the UK increased by 0.4% in November compared with the previous month, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics.
This is more than the 0.3% rise that economists had been expecting and gives weight to those that believe the country exited recession in the last quarter of 2009. However, manufacturing output showed no growth and six of the 13 manufacturing subsections saw monthly falls in output.
“At face value headline industrial production is not a bad number, but it is disconcerting that manufacturing went sideways,” said Alan Clarke, economist at BNP Paribas.
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Number of start-ups falls 10% in recession
The number of new businesses being established around the world has declined due to the global recession, according to data released by the annual Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM).
There were 10% fewer new start-ups last year in the 20 richest countries in the world. The decline was the most severe in America, where it fell 24%. By contrast, the UK only saw a 6% drop.
“Throughout the world, would-be entrepreneurs reported greater difficulty in obtaining financial backing for their start-up activities, especially from informal investors – families, friends, and strangers,” said Professor Bill Bygrave of Babson College, one of the founders of GEM.
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Half of SMEs in the cloud by 2011
Easynet Connect’s latest research shows that just over half of SMEs will be using cloud computing by the end of this year.
This compares with similar research conducted at the end of 2008 where just 22% of SMEs planned to adopt the cloud in a similar timescale (within one year).
Looking longer term, those planning to adopt the cloud within five years has gone up from 47% to 73%, showing that most small businesses now see the cloud as a viable option.
Also, those flat-out refusing to adopt the cloud at any point has halved, from 53% to 27%, reflecting the growing awareness of what cloud computing is, and the benefits it can provide, among SMEs.
Read more: http://www.commsbusiness.co.uk/RSS_News_Articles.cfm?NewsID=9926
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