The International Monetary Fund published their global economic outlook this week, prompting Nick and Jo to take a virtual trip around the world and compare GDP growth rates. The UK stands out as having one of the higher GDP contraction rates in Europe. Also covered in the episode, is the UK job support scheme that launches on November 1st and the continuously rising unemployment rate that is predicted to reach 7.5% through 2021.

Is the UK heading for a no-deal Brexit? Following Boris Johnson’s televised statement, it would certainly appear that way. Nick and Jo try to understand the implications of leaving the EU without a trade deal and the impact on businesses. They also discuss some insolvency statistics and encourage listeners to manage their risk with crown preference coming into force on December 1st. 

UK GDP grew a disappointing 2.1% in August, far lower than most had predicted... Much of the recovery came from the accommodation and food services sector, no doubt aided by the Eat Out to Help Out scheme. GDP has now grown in all three months to August 2020, but it remains well short of pre-pandemic levels with little sign of a swift ‘V’-shaped recovery. Nick and Jo sit down to analyse the August figures and discuss some findings from business opinion surveys in their latest podcast episode.

There are currently 262,000 zombie companies in the UK (companies with a balance sheet that is negative by at least £10,000). For comparison, the number of zombie companies back in 2015 was 130,000... so doubling over the last 5 years. Nick and Jo discuss this shocking increase and cast doubt on the retail sector, where the average company H-Score® is just 35.

Nick and Jo discuss the key points from Rishi Sunak's Winter Economy plan and they go back to basics, explaining the warning signs that people should look for in their critical customers and suppliers. Also covered in the episode is the trade credit insurance scheme

Nick and Jo round up all the major news from last week, including the Bank of England's Monetary Policy minutes and UK unemployment statistics. Plus, they discuss both the property and automotive industries as the country ponders a second lockdown…

The UK economy saw a 6.6% rise in July, but that is still 11.7% below pre-pandemic levels... Education grew strongly as some children returned to school, while pubs, campsites and manufacturing also did well. A difficult autumn now lies ahead, with growth expected to be slow for many sectors. Nick and Jo discuss this morning's figures and provide a better understanding of what they really mean.

Nick and Jo are back, this week the detail is in the retail as they discuss how the high street is recovering post lockdown. As of July, 29% of high street shops hadn't reopened in the weeks after lockdown relaxation. The Guardian have produced a fascinating interactive guide, comparing different retail locations in the UK, showing differing levels of recovery already.

GDP fell 20.4% - the worst of any G7 nation in the 3 months to June. But the bigger question is... what happens next? In this week's podcast, Nick and Jo take a look behind the headline figures, discussing a longer view on the numbers and the signals they are giving us for the coming months.

This week Nick and Jo try to make sense of some fairly contradictory pieces of information. The Purchasing Managers' Index July figures appear to be more confident than previous months, however the number of businesses taking loans is still surprisingly high...