Tag: Press Release

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Despite the cost-of-living crisis, interest in Black Friday has held up. PwC unveiled its annual Black Friday research which gives a glimpse of how shoppers are kicking off the festive rush for retail.

Interest has maintained from last year, with 37% of consumers interested and may buy (up 2% from 2021) and 24% of consumers stating they will definitely buy – matching 2021 levels. This is in contrast to 2020 levels where only 16% of consumers planned to purchase in the Black Friday period.

With almost half of under 35s definitely spending (48%), interest from male shoppers sits 10% higher than than females. Amongst men, 29% plan to definitely purchase with 34% interested opposed to 19% of women definitely spending and 35% interested.

Kien Tan, Retail Director at PwC comments:

“With the World Cup approaching and the first opportunity to browse high streets without pandemic restrictions in three years, it may not be a surprise that almost two-thirds of men will be shopping over the Black Friday period, with the majority of them (57%) looking for new tech or electrical products.

By comparison, female shoppers intend to spend half as much as men (£168 vs £310), and are mostly using Black Friday to get a head start on Christmas shopping, with 71% planning to buy for their family.

Meanwhile, interest in Black Friday is highest amongst under 25s: 9 out of 10 Gen Zers say they’ll be looking for a bargain, and three-quarters of them are planning to buy a treat for themselves.”

PwC estimates the average spend per consumer to be around £238 which will add £0.5billion extra to the retail economy this year taking the overall spend on Black Friday bargains to £7.5billion.

Shoppers will predominantly be shopping for electricals (51%), fashion (32%) and Christmas stocking fillers (28%). Interest in homewares (25%) and beauty (24%) have increased slightly from 2021. Shoppers are also showing a renewed interest in shopping in store for a bargain rather than online, with 19% planning to hit the high street and 12% planning to click & collect – a 2% increase in both arenas from 2021. 69% plan to shop online – a 4% decrease from 2021.

Lisa Hooker, Industry Leader for Consumer Markets at PwC comments:

“There has been a lot of commentary that shoppers are less interested in Black Friday this year, but that is not what consumers are telling us, with expected spend estimated to be £0.5bn higher than last year as people look for treats and bargains or try to spread the cost of Christmas over a longer time period.

Consumers have been closely monitoring their favourite brands in anticipation of big ticket electronics, more pricey winter wear or Christmas stocking fillers being discounted, and they’re in search of bargains more than ever given rising inflation.

Despite the consumer spending headwinds, many retailers have held their nerve this year, with the lower levels of promotional activity we saw last Autumn continuing into 2022. However, many retailers will still see Black Friday as an opportunity to engage with their customers, clear excess stock, and offer value for money, so we are expecting the usual ramp-up in sales and discounts as we approach the end of November.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Raj Mody, global head of pensions at PwC comments on the triple lock and state pension:

“The Chancellor’s decision to retain the triple lock will ensure the state pension does not lose value in real terms. Based on September’s inflation rate of 10.1%, it will take the basic rate from £142 to £156 and the new state pension up from £185 to £204 a week. For the 12.5 million pensioners who fully rely on the state pension this will be welcome news.

“Looking forward, if the triple lock continues, then it’s likely that the state pension will catch up with the tax-free Personal Allowance by the end of the 5-year period that the Personal Allowance has been frozen for. That will create an interesting policy situation for future Governments, which may be better tackled earlier than later. To end up in the situation where the state pension itself is taxed seems odd, for the Government to give out with one hand and then take back with another.”

Roshni Patel, DC pensions and benefits lead at PwC comments on the lifetime allowance:

“There was no further news on the Lifetime Allowance or Annual Allowance, suggesting they will continue to remain frozen for two more years. People’s pensions savings will start catching up with the frozen Allowance. It equates to £53,000 per annum for a Defined Benefit (‘DB’) scheme member, and would deliver less than that for a Defined Contribution (‘DC’) member, maybe around £45,000 depending on the going rate for annuities at the time of retirement. Apart from the disparity between DB and DC savers, these amounts might seem a lot but won’t feel like that in real terms at the end of the frozen period.

“With the reduction in dividend and capital gains tax allowances, it does make saving into a pension or ISA more desirable, instead of holding investments directly.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Phil Vernon, head of ratings at PwC, says:

“The Chancellor has correctly identified that one of the core issues with business rates is that the tax rate is too high and so freezing the rates multiplier in 2023/4 and the introduction of a package to reduce the burden will be welcomed by many businesses. However, these announcements will have to dovetail with the effects of the revaluation next year, and so properties facing an increase in their rateable value will still see an increase in their rates bills.

“This package continues the focus on retail, leisure and hospitality businesses relief, upping the relief to 75% of rates payable. But with the relief being capped at £110,000 per business, larger retailers and other sectors will be facing full business rates bills.

“Confirmation that the rates revaluation will proceed alongside a transitional relief scheme that will focus only on those rate bills that are increasing, will provide some reassurance that the highest rises in business rates will be curtailed. But as with all revaluations we will see winners and losers. The new rateable values for 2023 are due to be released imminently and so we should soon have a much clearer idea of the effect on business from next year.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Colin Smith, Energy and Infrastructure Tax Partner at PwC UK said:

“The Chancellor has made changes to the Energy Profits Levy, both by extending its duration to March 2028 and raising the rate from 25% to 35%. Today’s announcements increase the overall tax rate on the UK’s oil & gas producers to 75%. The cash benefit of the investment allowance remains broadly unchanged for most expenditure.

“A new 45% Electricity Generator Levy will apply where UK nuclear, renewable and biomass sourced electricity generators sell electricity at prices over £75MWh from 2023 to 2028. The overall headline corporate income tax burden on these businesses will therefore be 70%. This levy, which is charged on revenue rather than profit, replaces the cost-plus revenue cap proposed in the Energy Prices Act.

“These tax increases are forecast to raise £34 billion between 2023 and 2028. The amount of revenue raised will depend on volatile energy prices and may be adversely impacted if higher tax rates and the uncertainty caused by frequent tax law changes reduce activity and investment in the UK’s energy sector.

“Improvement in R&D credits for large companies will be welcome, particularly for those investing in new technology and innovations to support energy transition projects.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Cara Haffey, Automotive Sector Leader at PwC UK, said:

“The shift to zero emission vehicles is well underway and through one lens today’s announcement can be seen as a way of leveling the playing field by ensuring those drivers pay their fair share of road taxes.  However the balance is that we need to encourage this transition to be more rapid and therefore we hope this is not a disincentive to change.

“Indeed, despite the existing challenges in the UK market around EV adoption, demand remains strong, with UK consumers ranking third in likelihood to invest in an EV. In fact our research showed that in July of this year 5% of consumers already own an electric vehicle, and a significant 31% plan to buy one in the next two years.

“Today’s change may dampen appetite, however, an opportunity may emerge for the private sector to offer more incentives to reduce  consumers’ initial outlay and answer customers’ needs  for vehicles  that take in price and ease of use.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Isabelle Jenkins, Leader of Financial Services at PwC UK, said:

“The Government is clearly dealing with a range of economic challenges, so it’s encouraging to see the Chancellor reaffirm his commitment to the importance of financial services. A dynamic financial services sector is a prerequisite for the success of the other growth industries identified by the Chancellor.

“The plan set out by the Government today for Solvency II will see the release of capital, which underpins the government’s desire to encourage growth, something that will no doubt be welcomed by the sector. However, the rest of the industry will have to wait to hear what other areas of regulation the Government will seek to change. It is of course right that the Government ensures the UK’s regulatory framework is fit for purpose, but providing certainty and stability as soon as possible will also be important.

“Finally, as one the most innovative and digitally enabled sectors in the economy, transformation is being driven through the deployment of technologies such as Cloud and artificial intelligence. With future opportunities from technologies such as distributed ledger technology and quantum computing, the announcement that Sir Patrick Vallance is to lead work to consider how the UK can better regulate emerging technologies makes good sense.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Barret Kupelian, senior economist at PwC, comments on the Autumn Statement:

“We knew it wouldn’t be pretty, but today’s Autumn Statement demonstrates just how challenging the UK economic situation is, with the policies announced marking a return to Treasury orthodoxy. The Chancellor today announced a large fiscal consolidation to the tune of £55 billion, but it is his specific choices about both the form and the timing of when his policies will be delivered that didn’t make his statement.

“First, he decided to shoulder c.55% of the fiscal consolidation on spending cuts. The philosophy adopted by the Chancellor was similar but not as extreme to what George Osborne had followed in the Emergency Budget in 2010 where he chose to focus around three quarters of the policy decisions on spending cuts. Despite focusing on spending, the OBR estimates the tax revenue to GDP ratio will be at its highest sustained level since World War II, to almost 45% by FY 2027/28. Second, the overwhelming large proportion of the spending decisions come into effect in FY 2025/26, which is after the life of the current Parliament (see chart).

“The fiscal implications of the policy choices made in the Autumn Statement depend on how the economy fares in the future. On this, our high-level observation on the economic backdrop assumed by the OBR is that it is gloomy in the short-term but brighter in the medium-term. Specifically, the OBR assumes that there will be a recession next year, coupled with inflation. In practical terms this means economic output will return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024, which is a significantly worse performance compared to all other G7 economies. The impact on the labour market is for unemployment to increase by half a million, followed by a gradual decrease in the subsequent years.

“Soberingly, this means that the combined impact on households will be to erode real household disposable incomes by a cumulative 6.5% relative to 2021 levels. This type of contraction has never been recorded in Britain’s post war history.

“On a more hopeful note, the OBR assumes financial markets’ forecasts on the path of interest rates, which are higher than those of professional forecasters. If the view of professional forecasters prevails, then this could mean lower debt repayments than those forecast by the OBR”.

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

John Harding, leader of PwC’s Employment practice, says:

“Following recommendations by the Low Pay Commission, the Chancellor’s announcement that the National Living Wage (NLW) will increase by 9.7% and the National Minimum Wage (NMW) will increase by similar levels from 1 April 2023, will be welcomed by the 2 million employees who are expected to benefit.

“A full time worker aged 23 or older currently on the NLW will see the biggest ever increase to £10.42 per hour. These increases mean that the Government is on track to meet its commitment to have a NMW equal to two-thirds of median earnings (for workers aged 21 and over) by 2024.

“This commitment supports the Government’s ambition to create a high productivity, high wage economy and a fairer society. But an employer with 200 employees paying at the National Living Wage will now face an increase of over £500,000 in their employment costs as a result. So while the proposed increases look good for employees, they will create challenges for many employers in industries such as retail and hospitality who traditionally employ large numbers of workers close to the NLW. In addition employers that also pay above the NMW levels are likely to be impacted as employees look to retain the differentials.

“Finally, the rules governing the calculation of NLW and NMW are complex and have been subject to significant changes in April 2020. Given this increase and how many employers will now have employees caught by the NMW regulations, they should be taking the time now to understand what impact these changes will have on their current operations as well as their future employment models to ensure they are not breaching the rules inadvertently. The financial and reputational implications of a NLW or NMW breach are significant and include penalties of up to 200% and being publicly named as a non compliant employer by the Government.”

The press release issued by 17 November 2022.

Commenting on the personal tax measures announced at today’s Autumn Statement, Laura Morris, tax partner at PwC, says:

“HMRC is expecting to collect additional revenues of 13bn by 2028 as a result of the personal tax measures announced today. Nearly 30% of this will come from the reduction in the 45% tax threshold with approximately 23% each coming from the reduction in the dividend allowance and vehicle excise duty for electric vehicles.

“While the freezing of thresholds brings more people into higher tax brackets as wages and incomes increase, it’s clear that savers and people who ‘have more’ were the biggest focus of the personal tax changes announced today.

“The reduction in the threshold for the 45% tax rate to £125,140, brings it in line with the point at which individuals also lose their personal allowance. This means people will pay an effective tax rate of 60% on income between £100,000 and £125,140, and 45% on income above this.

“Threshold freezes create ‘fiscal drag’ whereby tax receipts rise because tax bands are not increasing in line with income and wage increases. For the maximum impact to be felt in terms of increased tax revenue, employment needs to hold up and wages need to continue to rise.

“The reductions in annual exemptions for Capital Gains and Dividend Tax will bring more people within the scope of these taxes and increase the tax return compliance burden for both individuals and potentially HMRC.”

Commenting on capital taxes, Alex Henderson, tax partner at PwC, adds:

“The Chancellor has announced a wide range of seemingly technical and limited changes to the tax system to raise taxes but they will have significant practical consequences. Many more people will now find themselves caught by the new lower thresholds which could mean we see behavioural changes. If you put yourself in the shoes of someone considering selling or investing in an asset, you may well delay your decision due to the threshold changes, but also due to the Chancellor’s signalling of a future direction of travel aimed at taxing capital gains more heavily.

“There will be a knock-on impact on the complexity of the tax system. The capital gains relief is only available to the most wealthy, but it does mean more smaller gains will now enter the tax system, adding to complexity for taxpayers and HMRC alike. The question is whether there will be any significant uptick in tax receipts resulting from these changes after the costs and behavioural changes are factored in.

“Ultimately all taxpayers value clarity and stability when it comes to taking a longer term view and unfortunately even relatively technical changes when they come seemingly every year undermine confidence.”

The press release issued by PWC on 17 November 2022.

Jon Richardson, head of tax policy, PwC, says:

“The Chancellor delivered on the promise that there would be few rabbits out of the hat on tax for this Statement. The bulk of extra revenue raised has come from freezing or reductions in allowances as well as the expected increase in the energy windfall tax. There was some positive news on business rates but the net impact is the UK is now facing a record tax burden.

“Apart from the additional tax there is a hidden cost to the announcements which is the additional tax compliance burden – as tax free allowances reduce, more income and gains are brought into the tax net which will need to be reported on tax returns for the first time.

“The Chancellor talked a lot about growth but with the corporation tax rate going up to 25%, no replacement to the super deduction and a net reduction in R&D tax relief, the UK’s tax competitiveness is significantly deteriorating.”

Rachel Moore, R&D tax partner, PwC

“The Chancellor has given large companies a surprise and much welcomed bonus by increasing the headline R&D credit rate from 13% to 20% resulting in a change in cash value from 10.5% to 15% (after taking account of the change in corporation tax rate). However this is being more than paid for by a significant reduction in credits available for SMEs where the rate of relief for loss making companies nearly halves from 33% to 18.6%. This rebalancing of rates between the two schemes will result in more than a £1 billion of extra funds for the exchequer.

“While it is widely recognised that there are issues in the SME market, this seems to be a blunt approach which penalises all claimants and does not tackle the underlying issues. It is also a double whammy for SMEs operating globally who will see claims reduced by the previously announced exclusion of overseas costs from claims. These changes will particularly impact the life sciences sector who depend heavily on R&D credits for funding.”