What the evidence means
The denominator is businesses reporting at least one supply-chain concern, not all UK businesses. The ONS survey is voluntary.
Conditional BICS estimate among businesses with supply-chain concerns.
G&G verified business evidence
UK businesses concerned about increased sourcing costs
Among UK businesses with supply-chain concerns in late December 2024, 44% expected increased sourcing costs during the following 12 months.
44
percent
Original source
Office for National Statistics
Business insights and impact on the UK economy: 9 January 2025
Among businesses with concerns, 44% expected increased sourcing costs.
View original evidence
Office for National Statistics. Business insights and impact on the UK economy: 9 January 2025. 9th of January, 2025. https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/businessservices/bulletins/businessinsightsandimpactontheukeconomy/9january2025
Why this matters to UK SMEs
Higher sourcing costs can compress SME margins quickly where purchasing is concentrated or prices cannot be passed on. The statistic helps frame the issue but applies only to businesses already reporting a supply-chain concern.
Key breakdowns
Among the 23% of businesses with at least one supply-chain concern, 44% expected increased sourcing costs over the following 12 months. This was eight percentage points higher than late September 2024. Other anticipated impacts included higher transport costs at 31% and higher labour costs at 24%.
How to interpret this evidence
The 44% uses the concerned-business denominator and is therefore not 44% of all UK businesses. It records expectations rather than realised cost increases. Businesses could report more than one anticipated impact.
Limitations
BICS is voluntary, excludes some industries and is an official statistic in development. The measure is a late-December 2024 snapshot and does not show cost magnitude, contract coverage, sector exposure, supplier concentration or whether respondents mitigated the risk.
Practical considerations
G&G perspective: quantify spend by supplier and input, identify contract renewal points and model margin sensitivity to plausible cost changes. Consider specification, ordering, inventory, alternative suppliers and customer pricing together, avoiding a mitigation that merely shifts cost or risk elsewhere.