Business Insights And Impact On The UK Economy - 1 August 2024

1st August 2024

The impact of challenges facing the economy and other events on UK businesses. Based on responses from the voluntary fortnightly business survey (BICS) to deliver real-time information to help assess issues affecting UK businesses and economy, including financial performance, workforce, trade, and business resilience.

In the last 12 months, 21% of businesses with 10 or more employees had exported goods, services, or both; this figure was 26% for businesses reporting they had imported.

Of those businesses that had exported, 16% said that their exports had increased in June 2024 compared with the same month last year, while 24% had exported less.

Of those businesses that had imported, 13% reported that their imports had increased in June 2024 compared with the same month last year, while 18% had imported less.

In July 2024, 33% of businesses with 10 or more employees reported they were able to get the goods or services they needed from within the EU; 2% were unable to get what they needed, and the remaining proportion (64%) indicated that the question was not applicable to them.

When asked in late July 2024, more than a quarter (28%) of businesses with 10 or more employees reported they had purchased goods or services from a UK nation other than their own in the last 12 months; this is the highest reported figure since the question was introduced in October 2023.

More than one-quarter (27%) of businesses with 10 or more employees reported they had sold goods or services to a UK nation other than their own in the last 12 months; 16% of those businesses said transport costs had caused challenges while selling to other nations.

The percentage of businesses that reported they were trading in late July 2024 was 95%, with 87% fully trading, and 9% partially trading (for example, trading with reduced hours or staff numbers). Meanwhile, 3% of businesses reported "temporarily paused trading", and 2% reported "permanently ceased trading" as their business's trading status.

Read the full ONS report HERE