Small businesses 'fighting back against recession'

Small businesses are fighting back against the recession despite a lack of help from banks, a business group has said.

In a survey by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), 60% of business owners said that their company was performing the same or better than this time last year.

Respondents said that they had lowered prices and found new ways to deliver value to help retain customer loyalty, with some 78% saying that they felt their customers were supporting them.

However, nearly 40% said that they have had to reduce staff levels and work longer hours to help their business stay afloat.

The FSB repeated its claim that banks are not doing enough to help small businesses, with many restricting access to credit. Some 18% of respondents said that they have seen an increase in bank fees and 33% said that their banks were setting new lending conditions, increasing charges and rates or reducing overdraft facilities.

Professor Alistair Anderson, from the FSB, said: "These figures demonstrate how times are really tough for small firms and how access to finance continues to be a real challenge.

"However, small businesses are fighting back, with some good signs that small firms are doing what the sector does best: responding to the market and supplying their customers with what they want."