Costs up, demand down

Another major crisis for Northern Ireland Businesses

Helen Davey Director 19/12/2022

Northern Ireland (NI) businesses are menaced by another major crisis after recently recovering from a crippling two years. Inflation is at the highest we’ve seen in 40 years. Gas prices have more than doubled since May 2022, and transporting products has become increasingly challenging. None of this has been helped by the recent instability within the political world; Liz Truss resigned after 44 weeks in office as prime minister, with Rishi Sunak becoming the newly elected PM a few days after. This was followed by an autumn statement of £24 billion in tax rises.

Under a significant government support package from the new Conservative government, energy bills for businesses will be cut by around half their expected level this winter – shielding businesses from volatile and crippling costs. The scheme will establish wholesale gas and electricity prices for six months starting October 1st.

Business concerns

Energy prices are likely to remain high meaning businesses will require support for a longer period to protect jobs and remain competitive. Experts are also predicting there will be a recession in 2023 and therefore aside from the government support, businesses are likely to try and cut costs, meaning jobs could be lost, as well as putting in further action plans to protect themselves

Action plans to deal with rising costs

To combat the crisis, NI businesses plan to increase prices and pass these on to customers (72%). Notably, this is very worrying for both businesses and consumers alike. Additionally, 4 in 10 (40%) businesses will review/change suppliers and 3 in 10 (30%) plan to use their business reserve/contingency money.

To see all of the findings, download our Northern Ireland whitepaper by clicking here.

MarketVue Business Banking from Savanta is a continuous survey of 1,300 financial decision-makers in NI businesses from start-ups to companies with £1bn turnover, featuring eight years of historical data.

For more information contact Helen Davey, Associate Director, Financial Services at [email protected] or on 07930 925 938.