Small businesses face annual cost increases of 9.9%, double the general rate of inflation, according to MORE TH>N BUSINESS.

The report revealed that In the second quarter alone, SMEs representing 97% of UK businesses, faced cost increases of 3.4%, with micro businesses being the hardest hit.

"We suspected that UK small businesses were under great cost pressures but we could find no data to confirm this. So we set out to create the first purpose built measure of small business inflation. The results surprised even us", commented Mike Bowman, Head of MORE TH>N BUSINESS. "These businesses are the unsung heroes of the British economy, representing over 1.6 million businesses in the UK. Now that we have a true picture of rising costs for small businesses, people will be asking the Government what realistic measures can be taken to support them, particularly in the current economic climate."

Stephen Roper, Professor of Enterprise, at the Centre for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises, Warwick Business School said, "The Business Inflation Guide fills a gap in our understanding of the pressures on small firms. This index, supported by MORE TH>N BUSINESS, gives us a robust and quantifiable insight into the costs faced by small businesses in an increasingly difficult economic climate".