......according to a new employment survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and recruitment group Harvey Nash.The survey of more than 700 companies also revealed that more than half the businesses surveyed expect recruitment levels to take more than a year to return to 2007 levels and 40% revealed they have put a freeze on graduate recruitment.
However, the survey also showed that many job losses had been avoided by staff working with their employees over reduced rates of pay and patterns of work."This has been a particularly bruising recession, but one of its most positive and striking aspects has been the commitment of many businesses and their staff to work together to try to trim costs and save jobs," said John Cridland, CBI Deputy Director-General.
www.ukba.co.uk
Monday, 29 June 2009
AWM Close Proof of Concept Grant Fund
I have just been speaking to The University of Wolverhampton who administer the Black Country node for the AWM Proof of Concept Grant Fund. They tell me that all projects under the fund must be completed by March 2010 and therefore the fund is closing for new applications very shortly.
So if you run an SME in The West Midlands and yo9u have a great and innovative business product idea now is the time to email me for more information. The scheme offers a 75% grant with a maximum value of £30,000 so it is worth applying for. It's certainly worth the email.You can find details of our grant application service on our website. So drop me an email. This is the last opportunity. Don't waste it!
So if you run an SME in The West Midlands and yo9u have a great and innovative business product idea now is the time to email me for more information. The scheme offers a 75% grant with a maximum value of £30,000 so it is worth applying for. It's certainly worth the email.You can find details of our grant application service on our website. So drop me an email. This is the last opportunity. Don't waste it!
Monday, 22 June 2009
Are The Green Shoots Showing At Last
According to Money Marketing magazine net retail sales of open-ended funds have had a strong showing in 2009 so far. This follows a trend of investors switching away from equities in light of the credit crunch, inflows into bond funds exceeded £1bn for the fifth consecutive month and April experienced the highest Isa sales in three years. Equity funds also saw modest retail inflows over the last two months.
The initial findings of an Investment Management Association poll of retail investors, conducted by YouGov in early May, show investor confidence has turned positive, with a 35-point swing.The IMA GB investor confidence index reached 106 in May 2009 (on a scale of 0-200, 100 being neutral) whereas six months ago overall confidence was negative at 71. The IMA GB investor intentions index in May 2009 was 99 (on a scale of 0-200, 100 being neutral). This is up 10 points since November 2008 and shows investors on the whole are becoming less negative about putting money into new investments.More than 50 per cent said they think now is a good time to put money into investment products, with equities being the most popular option. However, whether or not they will act on this remains to be seen. And investors are still cautious about the residential property market, with half thinking it will continue to fall for at least 12 months before showing signs of recovery.In terms of economic recovery, 47 per cent thought the economic slowdown would last 12-24 months, compared with November when 58 per cent thought it would take 12-24 months to recover. On markets specifically, 53 per cent of investors think it will take more than two years for the FTSE 100 to return to 6,000.Polls like this should always be viewed with caution as offering just a snapshot of investor views at one point in time. Taking a longer-term view, research published by IMA last month shows UK investors still give a strong weighting to equities over the long term, despite the trend towards increased diversification of holdings over the past few years. What is also telling is that UK investors have a resilient approach to equity funds. They largely held their nerve last year, making much smaller net withdrawals from equity funds compared with investors in other European countries.Again, only time will tell what will happen but current investor attitudes, coupled with their long-term behaviour, suggests equity investing may pick up in the long-term.
See also http://boost-your-business.blogspot.com/
The initial findings of an Investment Management Association poll of retail investors, conducted by YouGov in early May, show investor confidence has turned positive, with a 35-point swing.The IMA GB investor confidence index reached 106 in May 2009 (on a scale of 0-200, 100 being neutral) whereas six months ago overall confidence was negative at 71. The IMA GB investor intentions index in May 2009 was 99 (on a scale of 0-200, 100 being neutral). This is up 10 points since November 2008 and shows investors on the whole are becoming less negative about putting money into new investments.More than 50 per cent said they think now is a good time to put money into investment products, with equities being the most popular option. However, whether or not they will act on this remains to be seen. And investors are still cautious about the residential property market, with half thinking it will continue to fall for at least 12 months before showing signs of recovery.In terms of economic recovery, 47 per cent thought the economic slowdown would last 12-24 months, compared with November when 58 per cent thought it would take 12-24 months to recover. On markets specifically, 53 per cent of investors think it will take more than two years for the FTSE 100 to return to 6,000.Polls like this should always be viewed with caution as offering just a snapshot of investor views at one point in time. Taking a longer-term view, research published by IMA last month shows UK investors still give a strong weighting to equities over the long term, despite the trend towards increased diversification of holdings over the past few years. What is also telling is that UK investors have a resilient approach to equity funds. They largely held their nerve last year, making much smaller net withdrawals from equity funds compared with investors in other European countries.Again, only time will tell what will happen but current investor attitudes, coupled with their long-term behaviour, suggests equity investing may pick up in the long-term.
See also http://boost-your-business.blogspot.com/
Monday, 8 June 2009
UK Decline SLowing? Just Maybe
According to Angela Monaghan of The Daily Telegraph manufacturing PMI rose to a 12-month high of 45.4 in May, up from 43.1 in April. It has been rising sharply since hitting a low of 35.1 in February, where anything below 50 marks a contraction in activity and anything above indicates a rise.
"UK manufacturing looks like it may be close to turning the corner as the May PMI posted its strongest reading in 12 months," said Roy Ayliffe, a director at the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply which co-produces the survey."At this rate we would hit the no-change 50 PMI benchmark by Autumn – significantly earlier than economists initially predicted," he said.
Production and new orders fell at the slowest rates for 12 and 14 months respectively, with larger companies faring better than small and medium-sized businesses.Particularly encouraging was the new orders balance, which rose to 48.9 from 46.1 in April.
"In our view, the PMI surveys have been some of the most reliable indicators of the cycle in the past two years, so this sharp rebound should not be discounted," said Credit Suisse analysts in a note."On their current trajectory the PMI should be consistent with rising manufacturing production in a matter of months. Moreover, the recovery these indicators are showing is remarkably 'V'-shaped."
However, new export orders fell at a faster pace in May, measuring 45.3 on the PMI compared with 49.5 in April. It is further evidence that a weaker pound has so far failed to boost exports significantly, as demand in Britain's key export markets remains subdued because of the global recession.
Source http://www.tel;egraph.co.uk http://www.mgba.co.uk
"UK manufacturing looks like it may be close to turning the corner as the May PMI posted its strongest reading in 12 months," said Roy Ayliffe, a director at the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply which co-produces the survey."At this rate we would hit the no-change 50 PMI benchmark by Autumn – significantly earlier than economists initially predicted," he said.
Production and new orders fell at the slowest rates for 12 and 14 months respectively, with larger companies faring better than small and medium-sized businesses.Particularly encouraging was the new orders balance, which rose to 48.9 from 46.1 in April.
"In our view, the PMI surveys have been some of the most reliable indicators of the cycle in the past two years, so this sharp rebound should not be discounted," said Credit Suisse analysts in a note."On their current trajectory the PMI should be consistent with rising manufacturing production in a matter of months. Moreover, the recovery these indicators are showing is remarkably 'V'-shaped."
However, new export orders fell at a faster pace in May, measuring 45.3 on the PMI compared with 49.5 in April. It is further evidence that a weaker pound has so far failed to boost exports significantly, as demand in Britain's key export markets remains subdued because of the global recession.
Source http://www.tel;egraph.co.uk http://www.mgba.co.uk
73% Of Businesses Don't Check Credit History
73% of businesses questioned as part of Cattles Invoice Finance's annual business survey admitted that credit checking was not standard procedure when taking on new customers.
Combined with pressures on cashflow and rising levels of business fraud, this poses a substantial and avoidable risk to SMEs at a time when one large fulfilled but unpaid invoice could result in collapse.
Doug Crawford, group managing director at CIF, said: “These figures are concerning. It is never a good idea to take chances with new customers, but it is more important than ever when times are hard to ensure that you are trading with legitimate businesses.“SMEs should take every opportunity to minimise the risks they face in the current environment, including introducing a policy to credit check every new customer as standard. Legitimate, trustworthy clients will have no reason to question the procedure, and spotting potential problems before taking on new business could make the difference between survival and failure.”
Source: Cattles Invoice Finance www.ukba.co.uk
Combined with pressures on cashflow and rising levels of business fraud, this poses a substantial and avoidable risk to SMEs at a time when one large fulfilled but unpaid invoice could result in collapse.
Doug Crawford, group managing director at CIF, said: “These figures are concerning. It is never a good idea to take chances with new customers, but it is more important than ever when times are hard to ensure that you are trading with legitimate businesses.“SMEs should take every opportunity to minimise the risks they face in the current environment, including introducing a policy to credit check every new customer as standard. Legitimate, trustworthy clients will have no reason to question the procedure, and spotting potential problems before taking on new business could make the difference between survival and failure.”
Source: Cattles Invoice Finance www.ukba.co.uk
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