The latest research from home delivery expert Parcelhero has revealed that 31.3% of transport and storage firms have no cash reserves. – worse than any other sector.
Using data from the office of National Statistics, it has revealed that the transportation and storage sector, which includes logistics, parcels, haulage and warehousing firms, has a higher number of companies with no cash reserves than any other industry.
David Jinks, Parcelhero head of consumer research, said: “From 15- 29 June, British businesses were quizzed by the ONS about their cash reserves. The results are very concerning for transport & storage companies.
“Of all the companies that responded and categorised themselves as “not permanently stopped trading”, a whopping 31.3% of transport and storage firms had no cash reserves.
“In comparison, only 12.6% of transport companies’ manufacturing partners whose trading status is “not permanently stopped trading” said they had no cash reserves and only 15.8% of retailers.
Jinks said the story is equally concerning when it comes to assessing how many companies have more than six months of cash reserves, with only 16.4% of transport and storage companies reporting that they have more than six months of cash in the kitty. This compares to 27.9% in the manufacturing sector and 27.1% in the retail sector.
Of comparable business sectors, only the construction industry has a lower number of companies with reserves of more than six months, standing at 11.7%.
The ONS figures list “currently trading” companies separately to “not permanently stopped trading”. The data shows similar results for this category, with 27.1% of transportation and storage sector firms currently trading admitting to having no cash reserves, compared to 13.2% of manufacturers and 15.9% of retailers.
Likewise, only 17.8% of transport and storage companies were able to say they have more than six months of cash, compared to 27.2% of manufacturers and 27.2% of retailers describing themselves as currently trading.
Jinks said there is an upside to some of the data. He explained: “While transport and storage companies are clearly strapped for cash, there is a glimmer of hope in these figures.
“When asked the same question back in December 2024, 37.8% of transportation and storage firms that described themselves as “not permanently stopped trading” said they had no cash reserves, as did 36.8% of companies in this category that described themselves as “currently trading”.
“Compared to December’s results, it seems the number of transport and storage companies that currently have some cash in hand has improved in the first half of this year. Nonetheless, compared to other industry sectors, there is still much to do to ensure they have a safety net if the economic news continues to worsen.
‘One certainty is that it will be those transport and storage companies that are partnered with retailers with strong in-store and online sales that will ultimately triumph.”
