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Fear Holding Back SME Global Traders, Finds HSBC

Fear Holding Back SME Global Traders, Finds HSBC

Small businesses in the U.K. need more help to achieve their international ambitions, finds a new report by HSBC.

The bank released a new paper this month, “Exporting for Growth: The SME Perspective,” to explore how British small businesses are eying international expansion. Researchers found an array of challenges holding back small businesses from their global growth plans, however.

For instance, three quarters of small businesses that would like to begin to trade internationally said they are held back because they lack “international business experience and knowledge,” reports said. The majority admitted they have only a limited understanding of the local markets to which they would like to export, while local regulations are also baffling would-be SME exporters.

With all of these roadblocks, nearly half of SMEs surveyed by HSBC said they don’t think cross-border trade would even be important for their businesses to grow.

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