Business news

The CPA Daily Business News blog is back after a long weekend in North Wales — and there is plenty to catch up on.

Small business confidence has fallen to its lowest level in 12 years, hiring remains weak and business creation has dropped to a decade low.

Manufacturing is still expanding, but employers face continued uncertainty over energy prices, taxation, interest rates and employment-law changes.

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-4-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/


Today’s bumper edition also covers:

• The Bank of England holding rates at 3.75%
• The risk to the UK economy from disruption in the Strait of Hormuz
• Difficult conditions for housebuilders and construction suppliers
• BP’s decision to put its North Sea business up for sale
• The Chancellor’s 28 October Budget
• The latest UK and global market movements
• Insolvency notices from 31 July, 3 August and 4 August

For SMEs selling on credit, the message remains clear: review customer exposure, watch payment behaviour closely and act early when warning signs appear.

#UKBusiness #SMEs #Cashflow #CreditControl #BusinessNews #Insolvency #Economy #Manufacturing

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UK services returned to growth in July, while Next raised its profit forecast and Ryanair reported record passenger numbers.

But the wider picture for SMEs remains uncertain:

Most surveyed scale-up founders remain doubtful about the Government’s pro-business position.
Investors are preparing for possible tax increases.
Construction faces a severe worker shortage.
Drought could produce the UK’s worst cereals and oilseed harvest on record.
Oil prices remain highly sensitive to negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz.

For businesses selling on credit, improving demand is only part of the story. Stronger sales can increase working-capital pressure if customers take longer to pay.

CPA helps businesses check customer risk, monitor changes, strengthen credit control and recover overdue invoices professionally while protecting customer relationships.

Read today’s full UK Business News briefing: cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-5-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

Call 020 8846 0000 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

#SMEs #Cashflow #LatePayment #CreditManagement #UKBusiness #Insolvency #Retail #Construction #FoodSupply #EnergyCosts

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UK business activity is showing signs of improvement—but the pressure has not disappeared.

The services sector returned to growth in July and the construction downturn eased. However, private-sector employment fell for a 22nd consecutive month, housing developers continue to face affordability and cost pressures, and businesses remain concerned about tax, borrowing and interest rates.

Today’s briefing also covers:

The rise in electric vehicle registrations

Government plans to attract global talent

Pressure on Britain’s housebuilding target

Raleigh owner Accell entering insolvency proceedings

Global equity, currency, oil and gold movements

30 administration, liquidation and winding-up petition notices

For SMEs that sell on credit, mixed conditions make customer monitoring and early action on overdue invoices especially important.

Read the full UK Business News Today briefing and learn how CPA helps businesses improve payment performance, protect cashflow and preserve customer relationships:

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-6-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

#SMEs #Cashflow #LatePayment #Insolvency #UKBusiness #CreditManagement #Construction #HousingMarket #Tax #Economy

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Tax uncertainty, rising energy risk and changing technology are all influencing the outlook for UK businesses today.

Among Friday’s key developments:

HMRC’s proposed monthly tax system could create a difficult cashflow transition for millions of self-employed taxpayers.
UK investors withdrew £1.6bn from equity funds in July amid concerns over possible tax changes.
Bank of England analysis suggests AI is finally improving productivity — but vacancies are falling fastest in jobs most exposed to automation.
UK house prices were flat in July, with annual growth slowing to just 0.1%.
Brent remains above $83 as uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz keeps energy and inflation risks elevated.
Today’s insolvency notices include 6 administrations, 11 liquidations and 74 winding-up petitions.

For businesses that sell on credit, periods like this make customer monitoring and early credit-control action especially important.

CPA helps Members protect cashflow, assess customer risk and recover overdue invoices professionally while preserving valuable customer relationships.

Read the full UK Business News Today briefing on the CPA website.

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-7-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

#SMEs #UKBusiness #Cashflow #LatePayment #CreditManagement #Insolvency #BusinessRisk #Tax #AI #EnergyCosts

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The UK business picture is showing some welcome signs of improvement.

Permanent hiring stabilised in July after 45 months of decline, business activity moved back into growth and economists expect UK GDP to have increased by around 0.4% in Q2.

But SMEs still face a complicated backdrop.

Energy costs remain exposed to events around the Strait of Hormuz, businesses are waiting for clarity on tax and borrowing policy ahead of the autumn Budget, and operating costs remain high.

For businesses selling goods or services on credit, this is a good moment to remember that stronger turnover does not always mean stronger cashflow.

A customer can be busy, growing and still be taking longer to pay.

Today's CPA UK Business News also covers:

stabilising UK hiring
Q2 GDP expectations
rising business confidence
possible tax and borrowing changes
tougher right-to-work enforcement
house prices and business rates
global stock markets, sterling, oil and gold
today's insolvency notices

CPA helps businesses protect cashflow through CreditCare reports, monitoring, credit-control support and professional overdue account recovery while protecting customer relationships.

Read the full update on the CPA website: cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-10-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

#SMEs #Cashflow #LatePayment #CreditManagement #UKBusiness #Insolvency #Economy #Employment #BusinessCosts #InterestRates

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Britain's fifth heatwave of the year is becoming a business story, not just a weather story.

Almost three-quarters of England is now officially in drought. Reservoir levels are well below seasonal norms, farmers are reporting lower yields, water restrictions are spreading and wildfire risk remains high.

For SMEs, the effects can travel quickly through the economy:

higher food and agricultural costs

pressure on transport and energy bills

disruption to customers and suppliers

weaker discretionary consumer spending

greater cashflow pressure throughout supply chains

At the same time, businesses are looking towards an October Budget that could bring significant tax increases, while Brent crude is approaching $90 a barrel and renewing concerns about inflation.

Today's CPA Business News looks at what all of this could mean for businesses that sell goods and services on credit.

When customers come under pressure, payment behaviour can change quickly. Credit checking, account monitoring and early action on overdue invoices become even more important.

CPA helps businesses protect cashflow while preserving customer relationships.

Read today's full UK Business News update on the CPA website:

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-11-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

#SMEs #UKBusiness #Cashflow #CreditManagement #LatePayment #Insolvency #Heatwave #Drought #Retail #Inflation #BusinessResilience

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