BCC Welcomes MAC Recommendations

BCC Welcomes MAC Recommendations

Responding to the Migration Advisory Committee recommendations to Government on Graduate Visas, Jane Gratton, Deputy Director of Public Policy, said:    “This is a set of sensible recommendations from the MAC, which we hope the Government will take on board.    “While there are signs that recruitment difficulties are easing,…

Read Story

Skills Must Remain the Focus as Labour Market Cools

Responding to the latest labour market data published by ONS this morning, Jane Gratton, Deputy Director Public Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce said: “Employers across the UK will welcome further signs that the labour market is cooling, but more must be done to ensure they can access the skills they need.…

Read Story

UK Goods Trade Struggling For Impact

Responding to the latest ONS Trade figures published this morning, William Bain, Head of Trade Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said:       “The first quarter of 2024 shows the challenges UK goods exporters face, with a further drop in sales to both EU and non-EU markets, despite a…

Read Story

Businesses Help Drive The UK Away From Recession

Reacting to the latest GDP figures, David Bharier, Head of Research at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “Today’s Q1 GDP first estimate of 0.6%, outstripping expectations, is a welcome sign that the UK has moved away from last year’s shallow recession. Businesses across the UK have been the driving force…

Read Story

Businesses Continue to Hold Their Breath on Interest Rates

Reacting to the Bank of England’s latest interest rate decision, David Bharier, Head of Research at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “Today’s decision to hold the interest rate at 5.25% was widely expected. Businesses will be hopeful that tentative signals from the Bank translate into a rate cut later this year.…

Read Story

US Still A Land Of Opportunity For UK Business

Supply chain security, trade deals, tariffs and planning permission were the big issues during the BCC’s 5-day mission to the US to promote business and investment. Director General, Shevaun Haviland’s, trip was organised ahead of the US elections as issues around trade agreements, tariffs, supply-chain disruption, subsidies, protectionism and geo-political…

Read Story

SME Exporters Trapped In Doldrums

BCC’s Trade Confidence Outlook for Q1 2024 shows most SME exporters struggling to boost sales. More than half of all SME exporters (53%) saw no change in overseas sales, and 23% reported a decrease. Just under a quarter of exporting SME firms (24%) saw their overseas sales rise in Q1…

Read Story

Quarterly Recruitment Outlook: Hiring Difficulties Easing But Significant Concerns Persist

Businesses report recruitment conditions have eased, with fewer firms facing difficulties in hiring  66% of responding firms say they’ve faced challenges finding staff, the lowest percentage in three years Companies in the production and manufacturing sector are the most likely to report challenges in hiring staff (70%) 62% of companies…

Read Story

Inflation Cooling But Business Price Pressures Persist

Reacting to the latest inflation figures published this morning, David Bharier, Head of Research at the British Chambers of Commerce said:    “Today’s figures confirm inflation is continuing to slowly head in the right direction. That’s good news for both consumers and businesses.     “However, a lot of uncertainty remains…

Read Story

UK Trade Ticks Up As Global Demand Recovers

Responding to the latest ONS Trade figures published this morning, William Bain, Head of Trade Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said:  “It is difficult to draw concrete conclusions from a single month’s data, but there are signs of a nascent improvement in import and export volumes as global…

Read Story