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30/04/2009 - House rentals show revival signs - Although the oversupply of flats is driving down rents and hampering the property market, the letting market for houses is beginning to show signs of recovery, according to new research.
30/04/2009 - Fencing company hit by baby boom - The management at a fencing company has been left wondering if there is "something in the water" after more than half its staff announced they are expecting babies this summer.
29/04/2009 - Cash favoured over card payments - Retailers said that just over £116 billion of payments made last year in shops and online were by debit cards, which accounted for 43% of all retail spending.
29/04/2009 - 'Respite' for retailers in April - April retail figures indicate a "respite" rather than a "revival" for the fortunes of the UK's recession-battered retailers, according to the CBI business lobby group.
28/04/2009 - UK beer sales drop more than 8% - Beer sales in the UK dropped by more than 8% in the first three months of 2009, recording the worst quarterly fall in 12 years, new figures show.
28/04/2009 - UK keeps opt-out from 48-hour week - The UK will keep the opt-out from Europe's 48-hour working week in place after seeing off efforts to phase it out.
27/04/2009 - Bull makes beeline for supermarket - A west of Ireland store owner was left to count the cost to his business after a bull escaped from a cattle market and rampaged through his premises, it has been revealed.
27/04/2009 - Directors criticise equality laws - The "mass" of employment law is causing huge problems for the UK's smallest firms, according to a report.
24/04/2009 - Great English local wins top honour - The top prize in the Enjoy England Awards for Excellence has gone to the great English pub for its "outstanding contribution to tourism".
24/04/2009 - Bird's cigarette habit sparks blaze - The owner of a store in Lincolnshire had to make an unusual claim on his shop insurance after a sparrow with a habit of feathering its nest with cigarette ends sparked a major fire.
23/04/2009 - £5bn more trade credit insurance - Chancellor Alistair Darling has announced up to £5 billion of additional trade credit insurance for businesses which have seen cover levels cut.
23/04/2009 - Oldest masseuse toasts 60 years - Britain's oldest massage therapist, a 98-year-old grandmother from London, is celebrating having spent 60 years in the profession.
22/04/2009 - Buildings levelled to avoid rates - The scrapping of relief on empty property rates has increasingly led owners to knock down unused buildings rather than pay the tax, according to research.
22/04/2009 - Unpaid goods insurance claims soar - Figures show the number of trade credit insurance claims rose by 51% last year as companies were left unpaid for goods supplied to failed firms.
21/04/2009 - Increase in faulty recalled goods - A report shows there was an increase in the number of products that had to be recalled from shops in Europe last year because they were dangerous to consumers.
21/04/2009 - Takeaway 'too close to schools' - A takeaway in east London has been shut down for breaking new rules that ban fast food outlets from opening near schools, parks or leisure centres.
20/04/2009 - Matalan prosecuted over knife sales - Clothing and homeware retailer Matalan has been fined £2,000 after staff sold knives to underage boys.
20/04/2009 - Shopkeeper sold children fireworks - A shopkeeper has been fined £1,100 for selling fireworks to underage girls.
17/04/2009 - Diners dislike complex menus - While haute-cuisine has made a comeback following a rise in flamboyant cooking television shows, many people are put off by complex menus.
17/04/2009 - Thefts rise despite fall in crime - Shoplifting and thefts by employees in London have increased despite an overall reduction in crime in the city, according to police figures.
16/04/2009 - Budget may offer small firms cover - Next week's Budget could offer help to small and medium-sized businesses through new Government guarantees on trade credit insurance, it has been reported.
16/04/2009 - Publicans crippled by high rents - Thousands of pubs have changed hands in recent years with debt leading to repossession in many cases, data show.
15/04/2009 - Scottish hotels see occupancy fall - Scotland's hotel industry saw a relatively slower fall in occupancy rates compared with the UK as a whole in what was a "challenging start to the year", figures have shown.
15/04/2009 - Downturn leads to cramped living - Rising unemployment brought on by the recession will see the number of people living in overcrowded homes in England soar by 15% over the next two years, it has been warned.
14/04/2009 - Driving tests 'not thorough enough' - Employers are calling for a post-test driving qualification as they think young people are ill-equipped to cope with the demands of driving for work.
14/04/2009 - Minister urges use of empty stores - It should be easier for local groups to take over empty shops in order to prevent recession-hit high streets turning into bleak ghost towns, according to the Government.
09/04/2009 - Calls for rural business rate cuts - The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is calling for a rural recession rate relief scheme in the Budget to help companies which have seen trade half during the downturn.
09/04/2009 - Company warning over fake £1 coins - A company that tests money collected from vending machines has said that far more fake £1 coins are in circulation than officially accounted for.
08/04/2009 - Police rung over shrimp emergency - A disgruntled customer in the US called the country's 911 emergency number because she did not get enough shrimp in her take-away fried rice, it has been revealed.
08/04/2009 - Taxes 'putting pub jobs at risk' - A leading organisation in the beer and pub sector has warned nearly 60,000 jobs could be lost from the industry over the next five years if the Government continues to increase taxes.
07/04/2009 - Shoppers urged 'get a bag habit' - Shoppers are being urged to "get a bag habit" as part of a major new drive to get businesses to cut back on the huge amount of plastic carrier bags handed out each year.
07/04/2009 - Business pleads for less red tape - Unemployment will reach 3.2 million in the third quarter of next year as the economy shrinks by 3%, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has warned.
06/04/2009 - Benefit reforms failing landlords - Research has found many social tenants are failing to pass on their Local Housing Allowance (LHA) to landlords following changes to the benefit system.
06/04/2009 - High street fortunes looking up - The UK's beleaguered high street has received a small piece of encouraging news after Marks & Spencer boss Sir Stuart Rose said that trading conditions had stopped getting worse.
03/04/2009 - Pubs 'being forced to close down' - Company cartels that charge tenants up to 80p above the wholesale price of a pint of beer are driving pubs out of business, according to trade union GMB.
03/04/2009 - 'Happy' anniversary for smoking ban - On the two-year anniversary of the smoking ban the Welsh Assembly Government has said smokers and businesses are abiding by the rules and not lighting up in enclosed public places.
02/04/2009 - Sports club water bill changes call - The Tories are calling on the Government to impose a "moratorium" on changes to water charges that have seen large increases in the bills of some churches and sports clubs.
02/04/2009 - More firms choose to freeze wages - More companies have taken the decision to freeze wages and among those implementing an increase, the average amount given has fallen, new research has revealed.
01/04/2009 - Business rate increase scrapped - Plans to increase business rates by 5% next month have been scrapped by Chancellor Alistair Darling, who has instead limited the hike to 2%.
01/04/2009 - Post office fined over knife sale - A post office in London has been fined £1,750 after two children were sold a knife.