The trade credit insurer said that more than £1bn of extra trade could be facilitated in the coming months and that small- and medium-sized businesses would benefit the most.

Atradius said that the increase in capacity, which follows improvements in the sourcing of up-to-date information, has enabled it to identify businesses that are performing well within their trade sector, despite the economic downturn.

While there will be an increase in all trade sectors, print, paper and publishing will reap the benefits, it claimed.

Shaun Purrington, Atradius UK and Ireland director, said: "For some time, we have stated that cover would increase if we could to see improvements in the sharing of information by businesses.

"We are delighted to have seen a significant shift in business practices to this effect. This will be a welcome boost for our customers as they grapple with credit risks in an uncertain environment."

An Atradius spokeswoman said: "Our underwriting team is getting better quality, more up-to-date information from UK businesses generally.

"This means that they are able to single out more businesses doing well, even in tough sectors, and are able therefore to write cover on them."

Phil McCabe, a spokesman for the Forum of Private Business, welcomed the move.

He said many trade credit insurers removed cover from SMEs at the start of the recession as they were considered too much of a risk.

"This caused serious problems right down the supply chain. While the government did step in with the Trade Credit Insurance top-up scheme, take-up of this has been poor, with tight qualification criteria and high costs turning business owners away.

"It wasn't available to companies that had had their cover withdrawn completely, which almost defeated the object."

He claimed that Atradius's move was a very encouraging one, which would hopefully herald the start of a reversal in the policies of more trade credit insurers."