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A report looking at the turnover of 4,000 UK businesses has revealed that the first quarter of 2012 was the best performing quarter since 2007. The Business Factors Index from Bibby Financial Services has been charting the performance of its client base across key industry sectors including manufacturing, construction and business services for the past five years, from a base point of 100. Traditionally seasonal factors mean the average performance for the first quarter of the year is low, but this year it reached 100.3, the highest level for Q1 since 2008, when it was 90.4. This suggests there could be increased growth throughout the year if there is similar increased activity in the remaining quarters. The index also analysed the outlook among 500 SME business owners, depicting a more positive Q1 as almost half of businesses saw a significant rise in the number of new and former customers returning, and 41% said they had been able to welcome new customers, up from 32% in the previous quarter. There was also a rise in the number of businesses applying for funding, with almost one in five extending their external finance facilities. Edward Winterton, executive director for Bibby Financial Services, said: “We are encouraged by this strong start to the year among our own client base of 4,000, as we feel this could be indicative of an uplift in activity across the economy. “In simple terms, if we see year-on-year improvements like this during the rest of 2012, it will be a welcome return to growth, although there is still a long way to go before we can talk about full recovery. “There are concerns about the level of growth in the economy of course, but we have seen business funding rising during this quarter which we believe is a result of the extra business coming through the doors, and that will help SMEs plan for growth if the economy starts to improve as we hope.” Other Business Money News
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