Rising inflation adds to freelancers' business costs
- 17 Jan 2017
IPSE has today (Tuesday 17 January) reacted to the UK's Consumer Price Index, which rose to 1.6% in December.
Lorence Nye, IPSE Economic Adviser, commented: "An increase in inflation is generally bad news for self-employed people. According to IPSE research, while freelancers appear to be correctly forecasting increased inflation, most of them don’t see their rates increasing and this will mean they will be worse off in real terms over the coming 12 months.
"The sharp rise in transport costs, especially in fuel and air fares, is an area of big concern, as independent professionals tend to travel for work a lot more often than traditional employees.
"Inflation presents a challenge for the Bank of England. While they still want to support the economy through Brexit, the weakness in sterling may result in inflation going beyond their two per cent target. The Bank needs to maintain clear communication with business and the markets to help us navigate through the uncertainity."
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