UK businesses have seen a 24% rise in annual income growth since 2010, according to the latest Barclays SME Income Index.
Analysis of the current account levels of Barclays small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in 2015 showed that year-on-year, the annual growth rate of business income has slowed, from a high of 8% in 2014, to 4%. Last year’s annual growth rate of 8% was the biggest in 14 years. Yet with some annual income growth having occurred in 2015 SMEs are projected to continue to experience growth in 2016.
Despite the solid overall performance, figures for the retail sector give little to cheer about. Modest growth of 4% last year has stalled at less than a half of one percent in 2015. Of the 14 sectors represented, only agriculture and education fared worse.
Adam Rowse, Head of Business Banking at Barclays commented: “2014’s credit income growth rate was exceptionally high and the biggest since the turn of the century so 2015’s growth rate of 4% is still an indicator of a thriving year for UK businesses.
