News

Our team has summarised the key developments for NI businesses in the news this week.

Business

Hutchinson Engineering expansion plan to create 39 new jobs - Kilrea firm Hutchinson Engineering has announced plans to create 39 jobs as part of a £2.2 million investment. The Derry company, which specialises in sub-contract engineering and metal fabrication, is looking to expand into the Republic and Britain. (Source - The Irish News)  

Significant increases over the last year in prime cattle and cull cow prices have led to Tyrone meat processor Foyle Food Group posting improvements across all its key performance indicators. (Source - The Irish News)

Belfast-based accountancy practice Muldoon & Company has opened newly expanded offices in the Queen's Quarter in Belfast. (Source - The Irish News)

Belfast-based FinTrU announce plans to create 500 jobs in Portugal (Source - The Irish News)

Mid Ulster District Council’s planners have granted permission for the temporary installation of modified shipping containers and lightweight structures on Dungannon’s Market Square - Lodged by agent Barry Maguire Chartered Architect on behalf of Dungannon Enterprise Centre, the application sought permission to temporarily erect (for three years) modified shipping containers and lightweight structures at a site south west of and immediately adjacent to no 27 Market Square, Dungannon. (Source - MyTyrone)

Outsource Group has secured three new contracts for its OSG Cloud business across the transport, homeware and hospitality sectors - TST Group, Maestro and Bedeck are the latest customers to sign up for the services offered by the Antrim-headquartered company. This brings OSG Cloud’s customer-base to more than 50 companies, spanning Europe, the Middle East & Africa and North America.(Source - Insider Media)

 

Deals

A Toomebridge-based manufacturer of kitchen doors and equipment has secured new investment in a deal which provided a successful exit for BGF – Founded in 1993 by Eamon and Paul Donnelly, alongside their late father Eddie, Uform employs 415 people at facilities in Co Antrim and Co Donegal and supplies more than 1,500 kitchens per week to a customer base throughout the UK and Ireland.  Cardinal Ireland Partners, the Irish private equity growth fund managed by Cardinal Capital Group, has invested in Uform, with plans to scale the business. As part of the deal, BGF will re-invest alongside Cardinal and will continue to back the company as a minority shareholder. (Source - Insider Media)

Radius Vehicle Solutions expands to Ireland following acquisition of Traction - Long-established Belfast contract hire, rental and hire purchase specialist Traction Finance has been acquired by Radius Vehicle Solutions. (Source - The Irish News)

 

The Economy

Liz Truss’s record-breaking short stint in charge of the UK has provided some “brief respite” for investors – but they now crave stability, analysts have said - The Prime Minister’s monumental resignation sent the pound and Government bonds upward while the FTSE 100 tipped into the green. The FTSE 100 closed 18.92 points higher, or 0.27%, at 6,943.91. (Source - The Belfast Telegraph)

Data shows more than 306,000 overdue invoices in Northern Ireland – Late-payers may force hundreds of already struggling and cash-strapped small businesses in the north to collapse, according to insolvency and restructuring trade body R3. (Source - The Irish News)

Around 100,000 people in Northern Ireland have said they missed paying bills or loan repayments during early 2022, a new report has revealed - The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) also found that 13% of all people in Northern Ireland — around 200,000 — were finding it difficult to keep up with bills or loan repayments. (Source - The Belfast Telegraph)

'Critical business distress' in Northern Ireland soars compared to rest of the UK - The number of cash-strapped companies in Northern Ireland rated as being in “critical financial distress” is rising 10 times faster than the rest of the UK, according to a quarterly snapshot of the region's corporate health. The latest Red Flag Alert report from business rescue and recovery specialist Begbies Traynor shows that in the third quarter of this year there was a 67 per cent increase in the number of local firms in ‘critical’ distress compared to just a 7 per cent rise for the rest of the UK. (Source - The Irish News)

Demand for staff in the north is still high despite a slight rise in the official unemployment rate, a new report has found. (The Irish News)

 The Northern Irish grocery market saw sales drop by 3 per cent in the year to October 3 as inflation stands at 7.1 per cent - the highest on record - according to fresh analysis by Kantar. (Source - The Irish News)

 

Work Place

Bank of Ireland & Danske announce new paid menopause leave policy - 10 days of paid leave will be offered to workers experiencing menopause-related sickness. (Source - The Irish News)