The latest Barclays Entrepreneurs Index has revealed a resurgence in entrepreneurial activity across UK and Ireland as there was a 14% rise in the number of growing private businesses with shareholder changes from second half of 2011 to second half of 2012.
The Index also reveals a steady rise in the average profitability by 54% to GBP2 million in the same period, going from £1.3 million in H2 2011 to £1.7m in H1 2012 before reaching the latest figure.
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According to the latest latest Barclays Entrepreneurs Index, a total of 24,000 growing companies across the region had shareholder changes in the second half of 2012, compared to 13,000 in the first half of 2012 and 21,000 in the second half of 2011.
Yorkshire, Wales and the North West have experienced a marked revival in manufacturing activity, with average increase of 45%
The second in the series of report from Barclays looking at the entrepreneurial landscape in the UK and Ireland also indicated a steady rise in the financial health of growing companies with shares changing hands. Profitability rose among these companies in each wave of the research,to £2m in H2 2012.
The Index found that the industrial sector, 70% of which is made up of manufacturing companies, saw the most entrepreneurial activity. There was a 30% increase in the number of companies with shares changing hands in this sector, from 4,827 in the second half of 2011 to 6,323 companies in the second half of 2012.
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By GlobalDataAmongst all regions in the UK & Ireland, London saw the upturn in the number of companies with shares changing hands (36%). Outside of London, the North West saw an impressive rise of 23%. There was also significant growth in employment by these companies, which now have a workforce of some 4.5m people – providing around 14% of total employment in the UK & Ireland. An additional half a million people are employed in growing businesses with shares changing hands than a year ago.
Alongside the significant growth in shareholder changes in the industrial sector, there was a 40% increase in technology sector, with the number of companies with shares changing hands going from 1,313 in H2 2011 to 1,838 in H2 2012. The finance sector also saw a marked uplift, up by 58% from 1,165 to 1,838.
Aside from the industrial sector, the sectors with the largest numbers of companies with shares changing hands were in retail and knowledge, with these three sectors accounting for more than half of all entrepreneurial activity. During H2 2012, there were 4,567 companies with shares changing hands in the retail sector and 2,295 companies in the knowledge sector.
