Responding to the announcement of the new UK approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol, William Bain, Head of Trade Policy at the BCC, said: “Businesses in both Great Britain and Northern Ireland need durable, workable, negotiated solutions on compliance with the Protocol to ensure the continued two-way flow of goods East-West and North-South. The UK and EU governments need to work together to find…
Proportion of UK exporters reporting increased export sales (27%) rises from Q1, but proportion reporting decreased sales (28%) remains historically high Manufacturing exporters were more likely to see rising sales than exporting services firms B2C services exporters more likely to see sales fall, but neither B2C nor B2B seeing significant sales growth Respondents cited issues with UK-EU TCA as a major barrier to growing…
Commenting on ONS Labour Market statistics for July 2021 published today, BCC Head of Economics, Suren Thiru, said: “The significant rise in payroll employment suggests that UK jobs market continued to improve as the economy gradually reopened. “Surging demand for labour amid the economy unlocking, the rapid vaccine rollout and continued government support helped drive higher payroll employment…
Reacting to the Prime Minister’s statement today, Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the BCC, said: “This is a much-needed step on the road to normality and we welcome the Prime Minister setting out the direction of travel in advance of reopening. “But businesses in England still do not have the full picture they desperately need to plan for unlocking. “Much remains in the balance, firms do not yet know the future of self-isolation rules, if testing will remain…
Significantly more firms reporting improvements in key indicators, such as domestic sales and business confidence with some measures returning to pre-pandemic levels However, these rises come from the lowest base in the 31-year history of the QES, and business conditions remain fragile The balance of manufacturers expecting to increase their prices hits the highest level in the history of the QES dataset, while the proportion of businesses citing inflation as a…
A new BCC survey of more than 900 UK firms shows that remote working was by far the most common form of flexible working offered at 66% – however only 54% of B2C services firms could offer it, against 80% of B2B services firms 72% of businesses say they will have at least one member…
Commenting on ONS Labour Market statistics for May 2021 published today, BCC Head of Economics, Suren Thiru, said: “The decline in the unemployment rate and the rise in payroll employment is further confirmation that the UK jobs market is now more resilient to the ongoing restrictions. “Continued government support and the easing of restrictions as the UK moved to step two of the government’s roadmap helped drive higher payroll employment in April. “The rise…
Commenting on GDP figures for Q1 2021, published today by the ONS, Suren Thiru, Head of Economics at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said: “While the UK economy contracted in the first quarter, the downbeat headline figure masks a renewed momentum through the quarter from January’s drop in output to an exceptionally strong March outturn as lockdown measures started to…
The joint report: Finds that new ways of working introduced during the pandemic offer opportunities for both employers and staff Highlights how supporting employees’ mental wellbeing and digital skills will become increasingly important Shows that equipping school-leavers with key people skills to deal with new working arrangements will be vital The British Chambers of Commerce and Barclays LifeSkills have today…
The BCC is urging the government to give businesses much greater clarity on its roadmap out of lockdown as firms continue to suffer. The business organisation, which represents tens of thousands of companies of all shapes and sizes across the UK, has written to the government seeking updates on a number of vital issues. In particular, it says firms need to know how the government is assessing…
