Begbies Traynor: UK will narrowly avoid triple dip recession

THE UK WILL narrowly avoid a triple dip recession according to Begbies Traynor’s Red Flag report.

The report which looks at the financial stability of UK companies showed that the corporate recovery of UK publicly listed companies is continuing.

According to the figures there was a 34% decline in “critical” financial distress in companies in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the same period a year ago. Particularly buoyant is the professional services sector which showed a 63% decrease in Q1 to 66 cases, down from 176 for the same period in 2012.

Julie Palmer, (pictured) partner at Begbies Traynor said: “Thanks to improving business confidence, increasing demand for advisory services and a revival of transactions, the … professional services sectors are gaining momentum. The situation has certainly been helped by the fact that many of these businesses have reduced their cost bases significantly during the downturn such that any uptick in activity quickly improves their bottom line.

“This trend may also be a positive sign of what to expect from the GDP figures later this week, as the significant improvement in the UK Services sector could well push an otherwise flat market into growth territory, narrowly avoiding an unprecedented triple dip recession.”

The Red Flag report showed that construction was also experiencing a 48% reducing in “critical” financial distress in the first quarter compared to the same period a year ago. However, the real estate sector saw a rise of 24% in Q1 compared to Q1 2012.