The Director of the Small Firms Association, Avine McNally, said that while today’s inflation figures show a monthly decrease of 0.5%, the inflation rate year-on-year clearly shows a rise of 1.2% in January.
Ms McNally said: "Recent measures announced in Budget 2013 have and will continue to hit disposable incomes, this in turn will weigh negatively on spending power.
"In general we are seeing inflation becoming quite subdued. A concern for many small firms is the external factors such as energy costs which may cause a risk to the inflation rate this year."
"It is essential that Government take firm action to reduce the costs it imposes on the economy, so that it is not causing additional negative impacts on small businesses. By taking this action Government will be contributing directly to the viability of small businesses."