While it's possible - and desirable - that another report will contradict this one in the next couple of days, the Federation of Small Businesses has found that confidence levels among small business owners are rather low. Indeed, it seems most small business owners in the UK don't have anything resembling high hopes for the third quarter of this year.
Here's the FSB's main unfortunate finding: "Small business confidence has faltered each month since March with fewer small firms believing that business prospects will improve, down from 16 per cent to four per cent."
What's more, about two-thirds of the small businesses participating in the FSB's survey are operating under capacity, so it's not like a lack of improvement will leave everyone taking in money hand over fist.
John Walker, National Chairman of the FSB, stated as a result, "The consensus view from small firms is that the recovery is far from secure and there are significant risks to business growth in the future. With this is mind . . . we encourage the Government to support small businesses to grow and expand."
As always, let's hope that the right people listen. Or again, that the results of the survey are wrong (perhaps due to changing conditions or the FSB just catching everyone at a bad time).
On the bright side, at least the stock markets aren't really (yet) taking another nosedive today.
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Business Prospects
To paraphrase FDR the only thing we have to fear is negative business surveys. Sure things are going to be tough. But small business people are meant to be entrepreneurial. In almost every market category there must be dozens of opportunities for growth.
Is the negative tone a reflection of the membership of the FSB? Are genuinely entreprenurial small business people to busy to fill-in surveys?
FSB Reports
Currently, Fitch maintains long-term issuer default ratings of 'B' for National Cooperative Bank and NCB, FSB.
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