The UK government launches a new strategy to boost exports to £1 trillion. The UK Government has launched a new plan, ‘Made in the UK, Sold to the World’, to help businesses across the UK double exports and sell their products around the globe. The 12-point export strategy — published by the Department for International Trade (DIT) — includes an Export Support Service that offers a one-stop shop for exporting advice, and the launch of a new UK Tradeshow Programme to help businesses, particularly those outside London and the South East, to attend and promote their products around the world. DIT will also be expanding its Export Academy — launched in October — and will invite owners and managers of SMEs to access masterclasses, roundtables and networking events that help them overcome common challenges first-time exporters face. The UK exported £600 billion in goods and services last year, but only around one in ten UK businesses currently export, with the number of goods exporters falling behind competitors like Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands. To read Gov.uk's news release go to https://www.gov.uk/government/news/made-in-the-uk-sold-to-the-world-new-strategy-to-boost-exports-to-1-trillion.

1 in 3 UK businesses considers late payment as one of their biggest threats to survival. Research by Time Finance has reported that for 70% of UK SMEs, late payments are a recurring issue leading to more severe consequences. Time Finance found that less than one in three businesses are paid by their customers within the agreed 30 days terms, with "an astonishing" 70% waiting more than 60, 90 or 120 days. As a result, almost one in three businesses also fear their relationships with customers are negatively affected due to chasing payments, whilst over one-third struggle to pay their own invoices or their own employees on time. Recent figures from the Federation of Small Businesses estimated that 50,000 businesses close each year due to late payments. Phil Chesham, Head of Invoice Finance at Time Finance, commented: “Businesses have to spend money to make money, but how can they do this if their potential working capital is tied up in unpaid invoices? We can see businesses being held back by late payment and this then has wider consequences for the UK economy." To read Time Finance's news release go to https://timefinance.com/press-releases/1-in-3-businesses-see-late-payment-as-one-of-their-biggest-threats-to-survival.

Net Working Capital days exceeded six weeks in 2020, - a record high. According to the latest PwC Working Capital Study 21/22, in 2020 customers delayed payments, the Days Sales Outstanding — the length of time taken for invoices to be paid reached a five-year-high, increasing to almost eight weeks (54.1 days), up 7% annually. At the same time, and partially as a knock-on effect, companies stretched their creditors, with Days Payables Outstanding also increasing by 7% to more than 10 weeks (72.2 days), breaking a four-year trend of shortening payment days. Daniel Windaus, business restructuring services partner at PwC, said: “The deterioration in working capital performance reflected the exceptional volatility experienced by many companies." To read PWC's news release go to https://www.pwc.co.uk/press-room/press-releases/More-than-5-trillion-was-tied-up-in-working-capital-the-cash-businesses-need-to-run-day-to-day-operations-by-the-start-of-2021.html.

Corporate insolvencies in the UK in October increased by 63.6% compared to October 2020's figure. The latest insolvency figures from the Insolvency Service indicate that corporate insolvencies in the UK fell by 3.0% in October to a total of 1,405 compared to September’s total of 1,449, and increased by 63.6% compared to October 2020's figure of 864. Christina Fitzgerald, Deputy Vice President of R3, commented: “The month-on-month fall in corporate insolvencies has been driven by a reduction in the number of Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidations. However, there are still twice as many companies entering this procedure than this time last year, and nearly 20% more than in 2019. “This would suggest that there are still a fair number of company directors who are choosing to close their businesses after deeming post-pandemic success unlikely." To read R3's news release go to https://www.r3.org.uk/press-policy-and-research/news/more/31063/r3-responds-to-october-2021-insolvency-figures/.