Business news

UK businesses end the week facing a changing risk landscape.

Almost 1 million young people remain outside work or education, while Deutsche Bank says Britain could be particularly exposed to AI-driven employment disruption.

Retailers are also warning that business rates and employment costs remain difficult to absorb, while a cyberattack affecting three major UK airports has exposed data relating to 8.7 million customers.

Meanwhile, energy prices, interest-rate expectations and geopolitical uncertainty continue to influence costs and confidence.

For businesses selling on credit, these pressures can show up quickly in slower payments and changing customer risk.

Today’s CPA Business News looks at what the latest developments mean for SME cashflow, credit control and resilience.

CPA helps businesses protect cashflow through CreditCare reports, debtor monitoring and professional overdue account recovery — while preserving valuable customer relationships.

Read the full briefing on the CPA website:

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-28-august-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

#SMEs #UKBusiness #Cashflow #CreditManagement #LatePayment #Insolvency #AI #Employment #BusinessRates #CyberSecurity

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£26bn tied up in overdue invoices.

That is the scale of the late-payment problem highlighted in Enterprise Nation’s latest Small Business Barometer.

Its research found that 42% of small businesses were paid late during the past year, while three-quarters of owners are now paying themselves less than £20,000.

And the pressure does not stop there.

Fuel prices are rising. Shop-price inflation has reached a two-year high. Government borrowing costs are climbing. Oil is back above $92 a barrel.

For businesses supplying goods or services on credit, protecting cashflow is becoming increasingly important.

Today’s CPA Business News looks at the latest SME data, the economy, markets and insolvency notices — and what they mean for businesses waiting to be paid.

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-1-september-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

CPA helps businesses strengthen credit control, monitor customer risk and recover overdue invoices professionally while preserving customer relationships.

#SMEs #Cashflow #LatePayment #CreditManagement #Insolvency #UKBusiness #SmallBusiness #BusinessNews #Inflation

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UK businesses are starting September with another difficult mix of pressures.

Government borrowing costs have reached their highest level since 1998, the British Chambers of Commerce expects the economy to contract in Q3, and renewed US-Iran tensions have pushed oil and European gas prices sharply higher.

Meanwhile:

• Mortgage approvals have fallen to 56,100
• Smaller manufacturers are seeing weaker orders
• Retailers are warning against further business rates increases
• European gas storage is only around 65% full
• Brent crude is trading close to $95 a barrel

For businesses selling goods or services on credit, these pressures matter because rising costs and weaker demand can quickly change customer payment behaviour.

Good credit control is not simply about chasing overdue invoices. It is about spotting changes in risk early, maintaining payment discipline and protecting cashflow before problems become bad debt.

Read today’s full UK Business News Today briefing for the latest SME, market and insolvency developments:

cpa.co.uk/uk-business-news-today-2-september-2026-economy-markets-insolvencies/

CPA helps businesses improve payment performance, monitor customer risk and recover overdue invoices ethically while preserving commercial relationships.

#SMEs #UKBusiness #Cashflow #LatePayment #CreditManagement #Insolvency #EnergyCosts #BusinessRates #Manufacturing #UK economy

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