The UK economy has been slow to respond in wake of the worst fiscal crisis since the Great Depression. One bright spot in an otherwise bleak economic landscape is the recovery in the financial services sector. The sector was one of the first to return to positive growth and has now reported five consecutive quarters of profitability.
Overall growth rates are at their highest levels since early 2007 when the economy was growing at a brisk pace. Sales and business volumes were at surprisingly healthy levels across most sub-sectors. Let us take a moment to review them and CPA business cards.
There are five major subsectors that make up the financial services sectors: banking, finance houses, general insurance, investment management, and securities trading. All of them reported consistent growth and an increase in sales volumes last quarter. The subsector that made the most headlines was banking.
The banks that did not close their doors during the recession, in its aftermath, have slowly returned to profitability over the last few quarters. Though they have taken an awful lot of flack for curtailing lending, they appear to be doing something right.
Over the last three quarters, the banks reported increases in growth, but it wasn't until the 3rd quarter that they posted an increase in business volume. Business with commercial, industrial, and overseas companies has been solid. However, the banks have yet to return to 2007 levels. Many industry insiders expect solid growth in the next quarter.
