Author: George Holmes, managing director, Aurora Capital

That 0.3% uptick is a welcome sign that the economy is still moving, and for small businesses, any growth beats another month of stagnation. It should help confidence, especially for customer-facing firms that rely on households feeling secure enough to spend.

But SMEs should not read this as a broad-based recovery. The headline rise was helped by a rebound in manufacturing output, particularly a surge in car production following earlier disruptions, while construction activity declined again. 

Many small firms are more exposed to building work, local services and everyday customer spending than to big shifts in manufacturing.

Policymakers can’t treat one decent month as a mission accomplished; small businesses will continue to face high borrowing costs, increasing tax bills, and cautious customers. 

They need steady conditions and better access to finance so they can invest when demand improves, and ultimately help drive further growth in the months to come.