Firms increase tech spending

But priorities are changing

Businesses increased their spending on computer hardware and software by 7.8 per cent in the first half of this year, according to figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

Private sector companies spent £2.3bn on software and £3.4bn on hardware in the first six months of 2005, up 18 per cent and 1.8 per cent respectively compared with the same period last year.

‘For the second quarter of 2005, about 10.25 per cent of private sector business investment was on computer software and hardware,’ said the ONS.

But the figures suggest a shift in spending priorities.

In the first half of 2004, companies increased software budgets by just 0.6 per cent over the previous year, but spent 14 per cent more on hardware than during the first six months of 2003.