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By Graham Hayday, 3 December 2002 14:00

NEWS The UK is making good progress in the ebusiness arena, according to a new report published today by the government. The Department of Trade and Industry's 'UK online for business' report shows that half of UK organisations are now ordering online - 52 per cent up on last year's figure. It also claims that businesses are adopting a more strategic approach to, and sophisticated use of, technology. For example, the survey found a large increase in the number of businesses ordering online compared with last year, and a greater use of technology to track and check the availability of goods. Nearly one fifth of firms now make payments online, an increase of nearly 20 per cent on 2001. The study also showed that some firms are feeling the benefits of ebusiness. Eighty-seven per cent of firms who adopted ebusiness technology to reduce costs and improve efficiency found that it had made a positive impact in this area. Confidence in security has increased, as fewer firms (one per cent) are concerned about confidentiality and fraud than before. However, the study showed that the take-up of ebusiness technology has remained steady, with 91 per cent of businesses having access to the internet, and 80 per cent having a website. Ecommerce Minister Stephen Timms said in a statement: "UK businesses are beginning to make the best of, and get the benefits from, new technology but we must not stop here. "Companies understand that ebusiness is no longer just about having a website or email and that they must now focus on using technology to transform all their business processes." He added: "The report showed encouraging signs of more sophisticated use of, and strategic approaches to, ebusiness, and that we are well on track to developing an advanced e-economy." The International Benchmarking Study 2002 is based on the results of 3,000 interviews in the UK. It was commissioned and published by UK online for business, a partnership between government and industry which promotes the use of ecommerce among small and medium-sized businesses.