Beverages
Despite many no doubt welcoming a drink at the moment (most notably bankers) UK beer sales lost their froth in the third quarter of 2008, falling 7.2 per cent according to a Beer Barometer report from the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA).
During July to September, an average of 1.8 million fewer pints per day were sold compared to the same period in 2007, which represented the biggest third-quarter dip in a decade.
Sales specifically in pubs, bars and restaurants were down 8.1 per cent, with these outlets having been hit by the smoking ban and competition from supermarkets.
But sales in supermarkets and off licenses dropped by six per cent compared to last year, suggesting people are also reining in their indoor drinking too.
Rob Hayward, BBPA chief executive comments: ‘the accelerating decline in beer sales is a clear sign of a worsening economy, worried households and weakening spending. The downturn has now broadened to affect sales through both pubs and supermarkets.’
Manufacturing
Flailing demand for UK-made goods and a dip in output, has prompted the sharpest single-quarter fall in manufacturing confidence in almost 30 years, a survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has warned.
Only four per cent of firms surveyed by the CBI were more optimistic than three months earlier, with 64 per cent feeling less optimistic.
Many industry players intend to slash spend on machinery and buildings over the coming year, with the number planning cuts running at its highest rate since the early 1980s.
However, relief for the sector came with the government’s £350 million aid package for small- and medium-sized businesses, welcomed by manufacturers’ and engineers’ association the EEF.
Martin Temple, chairman of the EEF, says: ‘We need to build on this urgently with measures to assist companies with their cashflow and ensure responsible lending together with a delay in the planned increases in taxation and new regulatory measures.’
Property
In a gloomy piece of news for the sector, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has said that the number of people losing their homes after failing to meet mortgage repayments has risen sharply.
The UK’s financial watchdog has announced that the number of UK repossessions in the second quarter of 2008 was 11,054, representing a dramatic 71 per cent increase compared with Q2 2007.
Repossessions had been rising since September of 2007, said the FSA, adding that the number of people who have fallen behind with mortgage repayments for at least three months has also been rising steadily for more than a year, with cases up 16 per cent on a year ago.
Resources
It seems these days big companies are either scandalising the public by putting out the begging bowl, or provoking outrage by making too much money.
Recently BP reported a £5.6 billion net profit for the third quarter, which drew a chorus of protest and demands for the benefits to be passed on to the motorist in the form of price cuts.
Recession fears, fuelled by reports of the sharpest contraction in US oil demand for two decades, have depressed sentiment further across the commodities spectrum.
Retail
Retailers are likely battening down their hatches for a turbulent Yuletide trading period, with recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) suggesting it could be particularly testing.
The statistics showed total sales volume dipped by 0.4 per cent in the three months to the end of September. Stephen Robertson, director general at The British Retail Consortium, says:
‘With almost all sales growth confined to food, many non-food retailers are under huge pressure. Not only are sales hard to come by, but deep and widespread discounting is putting margins under tremendous pressure as costs rise. Even food sales growth is slowing as the rate of food price rises comes down.’
