30 . Glasgow Business February 2017
BIG DEAL IT’S SUCH A...
Trade deal must remain top Brexit priority, says think tank as report shows Europe a vital export market for Scottish cities
T
he European Union is by far the biggest destination for exports from British cities, according to the 10th annual Cities Outlook, which
features Glasgow in its findings. In Glasgow, 40 per cent of its exports are bound for the European Union countries, while Aberdeen is most reliant on the free trade bloc with 61 per cent of its exports heading to EU countries. Edinburgh is the Scotish city least reliant on the European Union although 37 per cent of its exports still head into the single market. A handful of UK cities are heavily reliant
on a single industry for their exports, which leaves their export base particularly vulnerable to changes in either demand for that product or a change in any trade agreements. Sunderland, a city that voted for Brexit,
leads this list. Without car manufacture, Sunderland would have the 12th lowest exports per job of all cities, rather than the highest. Derby, home of Rolls-Royce, sends an estimated 71 per cent of exports to Europe, while Oxford’s car industry, accounts for 62 per cent of its exports. Dundee, the only other Scotish city included in the report, sent 51 per cent of its exports to the EU.
Te report, which uses data from 2014,
showed that 48 per cent of exports from 62 cities were to EU countries. Te findings are published in the Cities Outlook 2017 report from think tank Centre for Cities, which urged the Government to prioritise a trade deal in its Brexit negotiations. Te centre said this highlighted that a trade deal with the EU must be the UK Government’s top priority. A separate survey from the British
Chambers of Commerce found that UK companies remain commited to strong trading relationships with European customers and suppliers in spite of the Brexit vote. Te International Trade Survey, which
collated the responses of almost 1,500 people in business, found three-quarters of respondents currently sell (76 per cent) and source (73 per cent) goods and services in the EU market. Te Cities Outlook shows Glasgow would
have to dramatically increase trade with other international markets to compensate for a downturn in exports to the EU. For example, to make up for a 10 per cent fall in exports to the EU, cities in the UK would have to nearly double exports to China, or increase exports to the US by nearly a third.
Te report also found that 15 per cent of
exports from Glasgow were into the US and 3 per cent into China. For Edinburgh, 17 per cent headed stateside and 2 per cent to China. Aberdeen exported 14 per cent to the US and 4 per cent to China. Te value of total exports per job in
Aberdeen is £18,100, ahead of Edinburgh at £14,990, Glasgow at £12,170 and Dundee at £9,940. Alexandra Jones, Chief Executive of
Centre for Cities said: “Securing the best possible EU trade deal will be critical for the prosperity of Scotish cities, and should be the UK Government’s top priority as we prepare to leave the single market and potentially the customs union.” “Te UK faces a major challenge in
boosting productivity and wages, and increasing the value and volume of city exports will be crucial in addressing those issues,” she said. “National and local leaders need to
consider how they can make cities more atractive to exporting firms. Improving skills and infrastructure across the UK will be vital in this and should be a central part of the Government’s industrial strategy.”
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