Accountants Claim SMEs Need Global Trade Support

New findings from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) suggest that 72% of British companies have some form of ‘global engagement’, 56% have customers outside the UK and 55% have suppliers overseas.  Less than a third of the customers of small and micro businesses, however, are based abroad. 

In spite of both the apparent opportunities and possible threats globalisation can bring to businesses only 21% of small and 18% of micro businesses have a strategy for dealing with globalisation.

Michael Izza, Chief Executive of the ICAEW, said:

The pace of global change has accelerated and UK businesses realise that they must adapt quickly if they are to thrive in an increasingly global marketplace. As our survey shows, small businesses want to take up these opportunities but need help to do so. We would like to see the new Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulation Reform (DBERR) ensuring that globalisation is a top priority.

To many it will be no surprise that the smallest businesses have little ambition to trade internationally or meet the challenge of globalisation.  Meeting the challenge of keeping afloat in domestic markets may be most micro-businesses’ first priority.

Nevertheless, technology and the internet have played a large part in creating globalisation.  It’s this technology that can help even the smallest businesses compete internationally – global micro-brands and all that.