Prospects for economy

Small businesses upbeat about the year ahead Barclaycard’s inaugural Small Business Barometer has found SMEs across the UK are optimistic about the year ahead, forecasting a 6.3% rise in revenue over the next 12 months. Businesses in the North East, Yorkshire and The Humber were the most upbeat - forecasting quarterly revenue growth of 5.3%, and an annual uplift of 7.9%. Additionally, 10% of those surveyed said they intended to start trading internationally in 2020.