Life on the roller coaster!

In a market that can’t seem to work up whether it’s shackled down by lead weights and sinking to the bottom of the ocean or bobbling along on the surface; everyday seems to bring a new discussion.

For much of the early part of the year our clients put us on pause until we had had the election, and finally once that was out of the way we saw a distinct upturn across all of our market sectors. However, like a candle with a damp wick, the announcements of the budget cuts and the Spending Review soon snuffed out that initial post election optimism.

Fortunately for us, we have little exposure to the public sector and now that the business world has finally digested what it believes the full impact of the spending review to be, we have again seem a shimmer of cautious optimism from clients.

Why cautious? The VAT rise in the New Year will again hit much of the construction and retails sectors although many expect the rise to be spread across the supply chain before reaching consumers. Talking with my colleagues across Europe has shown that many of the CEE states, Germany and Scandinavia are bucking the trend and performing well, giving rise to business opportunities for UK companies in those markets, whilst Ireland’s problems are well documented.

Putting a wet finger up in the cold early winter air to offer you a prediction for 2011 is a mugs game and one which for the moment I will pass on, but many clients feel that the UK has many of the fundamentals in place to deliver a slow growth economy and improve upon previous year’s performances.

If you would like to talk with one of the Directors about how InterSearch in the UK can work with you then please contact us at www.intersearchuk.com

That all important X

In the middle of January I wrote a blog (http://theintersearchintheukblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/already-fed-up-with-election.html) about the number of times that the election was starting to come up in conversations with clients, despite the fact that there wasn’t a date for it at that time. Well as we all now know, after yesterday’s announcement, we do now have a date. May the 6th, the same day as the local elections in many parts of the country.

Now it’s not my place to tell you, or to advise you, where to place that X on the 6th but simply to point out that now that the speculation is over can we please get on with running our businesses and making a few decisions?

At the moment the parties are firing broadsides and counter claims against each other about what they will or will not do to help stimulate the economy and put UK plc back on a firm trading footing. This election, probably more than most in the last decade or so will be won or lost or by whom the voter believes will do more for the pound in their pocket. So, the price of fuel which continues to rise inexorably and NI contributions will be much to the fore, whilst funding for big infrastructure programmes is likely to be hit by whichever of the parties wins on the day.

However, despite all the arguments that will rage and the promises that will be made and inevitably broken, yours and my daily routine will go on. Businesses will continue to trade and export goods across the globe.

The global economic indices have been more positive recently, and whilst the rest of the global economies will keep half an eye on our decision making, their businesses will try and take advantage if we sit on our hands.

To thrive, businesses need employees and with staff retention and recruitment back on boardroom agendas again, InterSearch is ideally placed to help you whichever party rules the land on 7th May.