Construction activity hits seven-year high – business news 9 April 2021.
James Salmon, Operations Director.
Construction activity hits seven-year high, fashion retail sales soared in March, UK businesses consulted on prolonged social distancing in offices, FTSE rebounds to new post-pandemic high, City offers support for SMEs and more.
Construction activity hits seven-year high
IHS Markit’s construction Purchasing Managers Index for March registered 61.7, as construction output increased at the fastest rate in six and a half years. Steve Plaskitt, partner at MHA, commented: “The spring budget was a boon for both house buyers, who stand to benefit from the extension and phased ending of the Stamp Duty holiday, and house builders, who will hope that the government’s guaranteed support for 95% mortgages until the end of 2022 will drive demand.” Elsewhere, Howard Archer from EY ITEM Club noted that civil engineering’s return to growth was particularly impressive following three consecutive months of contractions.
Fashion retail sales soared in March
Total like-for-like fashion sales jumped 57.5% in March – from a base of minus 25.9% in the same month last year. Sophie Michael, head of retail and wholesale at BDO, said: “Sales have improved, without a doubt, as retailers have found ways to adapt to lockdown. From virtual assistants to live video sales appointments, retailers have found technological solutions to drive sales, instead of simply shutting down like they did last year. However, as last March’s result was so disastrous, these results simply look better on paper as they’re set against such a poor base.” Separately, according to a survey by Deloitte, 56% of shoppers will feel safe about coronavirus risks when heading out to the high street next week, a 16 percentage point increase compared to last month.
UK businesses consulted on prolonged social distancing in offices
The Government has been consulting with professional services firms and other businesses over the long-term use of masks in offices and six months more social distancing as they make arrangements for the economy to reopen.
FTSE rebounds to new post-pandemic high
Growing optimism as the economy reopens pushed the FTSE 100 to its highest level since the beginning of the pandemic on Thursday, rising 56.9 points to 6,942.22. The FTSE 250 rose to another all-time high following a top performance on Wednesday. Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets commented: “While other major indices have led the way in posting record highs in recent weeks, UK stocks appear to be finally finding favour with investors as an economic reopening beckons.”
Small businesses supported by venture capital fundraising
Ian Sayers, chief executive of the Association of Investment Companies has spoken out on how the coronavirus crisis has affected fundraising for smaller companies, noting that “It’s really positive that during the pandemic 11% more was raised to support the UK’s most innovative and fast-growing businesses than the year before.” With venture capital trusts raising £685m last year to support such firms, he remarked: “This investment will support healthcare, science and technology businesses which have helped in the battle against coronavirus and supported us to adapt to life in lockdown. It demonstrates that demand for VCTs and the benefits they bring investors remains high at an extremely difficult time.”
City offers support for SMEs
The City of London Corporation will on Monday launch a £50m Covid Business Recovery Fund designed to support SMEs which directly provide services to returning City workers, visitors and residents. Grants will be based on individual requirements after a financial evaluation but will not exceed £100,000 per business. Policy Chair at the City of London Corporation, Catherine McGuinness, said: “Many City businesses are preparing to reopen their doors next week and start welcoming back customers. This will be a welcome return to a semblance of normality but inevitably some SMEs that have struggled during the pandemic will need support to get back on their feet.”
Thousands of married women could be owed millions
The I follows up on the news that thousands of married women could be owed by millions by the DWP because of underpayment. Former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb, who has been investigating this issue, said that the “scale of these underpayments is shocking” and urged the Government to repay women as a “matter of urgency”.
House sales surge after stamp duty extension
House sales picked up in March after signs that the extension of a stamp duty holiday had an immediate impact, the strongest surge since last August. Half of property professionals reported an increase rather than a decrease in agreed sales, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) said. Simon Rubinsohn, of Rics, said: “All key activity indictors rebounded in March. Demand is outstripping supply so prices go upwards.” The pick-up also boosted expectations that sales activity will increase over the next three months, with 35% of surveyors predicting an uptick – the most upbeat reading on this measure since January 2020.
Lookers enjoys sales boom
Car dealer Lookers said it would smash profit forecasts following a lockdown sales boom. The Mail notes that the Financial Conduct Authority has closed an investigation into the group – but the Financial Reporting Council is looking into Deloitte’s audits of the company. Mark Raban, chief executive of Lookers, said: “The events of the last year have highlighted the inherent strength of our franchised dealership model and the importance of an integrated customer experience which fully embraces both digital and physical channels.”
US offers new plan in global corporate tax talks
Washington has suggested multinational companies to pay levies to national governments based on their sales in each country as part of proposals for a global minimum tax. The Biden administration’s plans would subject about 100 of the world’s biggest multinationals, including the tech giants like Google, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon, to a regional tax settlement while a global minimum tax rate would mean reduced tax competition between states. Pascal Saint-Amans, head of tax administration at the OECD, welcomed the US proposals. “This reboots the negotiations and is very positive,” he said. The Telegraph reports that Ireland, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Singapore and the Caribbean will be the biggest losers from the plan. Goldman Sachs economist Jan Hatzius says the move illustrates how much Biden plans to rely on taxing foreign profits for new tax revenue while Chris Sanger, head of tax policy at EY asserts that any policy that ends profit shifting is likely to be good for the UK as it “benefits those countries with a large consumer base”.
An end to ECB bond buying poses risk to weaker eurozone economies
Experts warn that heavily indebted eurozone countries such as Italy and Greece face mounting debt costs after the pandemic – a situation that could unnerve investors and drive up interest rates. M&G fund manager Eric Lonergan said: “Europe is ironically vulnerable to recovery because it seems you only get temporary elimination of credit risk in European sovereigns when you are in an emergency, in which case the ECB underwrites your bond market. The problem is that when you come out of an emergency, you are back to market forces in the bond market, and some of these numbers look really, really bad.” Italy was particularly exposed, Mr Lonergan added, because the interest rate on its debt was higher than its rate of GDP growth.
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