UK Creates New Businesses at Slowest Rate Since 2010

• Britons started new businesses last year at the slowest rate since 2010, a potential warning sign for longer-term economic growth and productivity, according to official data published on Monday.
• The number of new businesses started in the United Kingdom fell to 316,000 in 2023 from 337,000 in 2022, according to the Office for National Statistics.
• This reduced the 'business birth rate' - the number of new businesses started as a percentage of the total number trading, from 11.5% to 11.0%, the lowest since 2010. Fewer businesses closed too, with 309,000 shutting their doors in 2023, down from 349,000 in 2022, lowering the 'business death rate' to 10.8% from 11.9%, the lowest since 2020.
• Many economists view falling rates of business creation and destruction as bad for productivity growth and long-term improvements in living standards, as older businesses often find it harder to adopt better business models or new technology.

(Source: Reuters)