More than half of UK firms are predicting price hikes in the next three months as they prepare to swallow Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s tax bombshell.
It comes as business confidence in the UK collapsed to its lowest level since the Liz Truss mini-budget in late 2022.
A British Chamber of Commerce poll revealed 55 per cent of firms expect prices to increase in the first quarter of 2025, with labour costs being the biggest driver.
Some 63 per cent said tax was a concern, the highest on record, and only 49 per cent expected turnover to increase this year, the lowest figure since the mini-budget.
Hit hard: UK firms are preparing to swallow Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s tax bombshell
‘Businesses confidence has slumped in a pressure cooker of rising costs and taxes,’ said BCC chief Shevaun Haviland.
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