Business activity in the UK just fell off a cliff. A survey from a major business group shows a huge drop, with way more companies reporting declines than growth. They think this weak mess will last until spring. Economists point to scared consumers who stopped spending before the recent Budget, and who still aren't buying anything now.
The guy doing the survey said it wraps up a terrible year, blaming the lame demand and high costs. All that pre-Budget nervousness made businesses delay projects, and even with that over, nothing has improved. Other data backs this up, showing the whole economy actually shrank recently. Even Black Friday sales were bad.
Nobody is hiring either. Service sector hiring plans are at pandemic lows. Companies blame higher wages and more taxes they have to pay, on top of having no customers. Inflation is cooler, but businesses say they will hike their own prices soon anyway to cope. The central bank cut rates again, which might help someday.
The overall picture is garbage. The international money people predict slow growth next year. Maybe there will be another rate cut or two, but for now, everyone is just hunkering down for a rough start.
The guy doing the survey said it wraps up a terrible year, blaming the lame demand and high costs. All that pre-Budget nervousness made businesses delay projects, and even with that over, nothing has improved. Other data backs this up, showing the whole economy actually shrank recently. Even Black Friday sales were bad.
Nobody is hiring either. Service sector hiring plans are at pandemic lows. Companies blame higher wages and more taxes they have to pay, on top of having no customers. Inflation is cooler, but businesses say they will hike their own prices soon anyway to cope. The central bank cut rates again, which might help someday.
The overall picture is garbage. The international money people predict slow growth next year. Maybe there will be another rate cut or two, but for now, everyone is just hunkering down for a rough start.
