A higher proportion of UK companies issued profit warnings over the last year than in 2008, a report has revealed.
Almost one in five listed companies, 18.7%, warned on profits over the last year, research by Ernst & Young found, up 1% against 2008 at the height of the global financial crisis.
“Macro-economic pressures, while less intense, have not relented in 2024 and the full impact of interest rate increases is yet to be felt by many,” EY’s Jo Robinson commented.
Some 70 profit warnings were issued over the first quarter of this year, against 77 over the last three months of last year.
Contract cancellations and delays were cited as reasons for warnings most frequently, EY said, with the consumer discretionary sector accounting for the most over the first quarter.
The 11 warnings across financial services were the highest since 2008, excluding the pandemic, EY added and mainly related to “lenders exposed to auto finance and some parts of the wealth and asset management industry”.
“Whilst the green shoots of recovery can be seen [...] we continue to navigate through an unprecedented period of uncertainty with forthcoming global elections and geopolitical risks still high on the agenda,” Robinson added.