Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
The average SME intends to invest £150,000 in the near future as lockdown easing sparks a growth in optimism.
Those in construction (£225,000) and transport (£209,000) plan to invest even more.
The Pandemic Recovery Survey from Bibby Financial Services reveals that three quarters (75 per cent) share a positive outlook and 74 per cent believe demand will return to pre-pandemic levels by Christmas.
SMEs across the country have begun to outline their plans to return to a more open economy, with six in ten (59 per cent) seeing the acquisition of new customers as the main reason to be optimistic.
Three-fifths (61 per cent) are planning to dedicate a portion of money to staff training and development (39 per cent) and new staff (29 per cent). This means nearly a third of the UK’s six million SMEs are planning to increase their workforce – providing a powerful boost to the UK’s economy.
This coincides with a forecast from The Bank of England that is more positive than expected. The new forecast predicts that GDP will grow by 7.25 per cent this year as household spending rockets from £200m of lockdown savings.
However, there are still challenges for SMEs including