South East: Exports to the Commonwealth continue to rise, says UKTI

In the run up to the Commonwealth Games, the latest HMRC regional trade stats show businesses from the South East are heading to Commonwealth countries, with international trade to many of these markets continuing to rise.

In Africa, the latest statistics show that emerging markets Ghana, Nigeria and Tanzania are proving particularly lucrative for South East exporters.  Between January and March 2014 exports to Ghana were £9.6 million, an increase of 13.9% on the same period last year, while exports to Nigeria were up to £42.2m, an increase of 17.7%.  Exports to the smaller market of Tanzania was worth £4.4m for the first quarter of 2014 with a huge increase of 79.5% between 2009 and 2013.

India remains a strong market for the region with exports from the South East during quarter one at £85.8m.  In the Far East, exports to Singapore have increased by 35.5% in the past four years, from £320m in 2009 to £434m in 2013.  Further afield, exports to New Zealand increased by over 60% from £60m to £96m over the same four-year period.

Closer to home, exports to nearby Malta increased by 23% from £19.5m in January to March 2013 to £24m for the same period in 2014.

Lewis Scott, South East regional director for UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), said: “Africa is one of the world’s most dynamic business regions with growth rates of up to 8%, a population of over a billion and $2 trillion in collective GDP,  so it’s encouraging news that South East businesses are making inroads into these markets.

“Trade within the Commonwealth is estimated at £300 billion a year and a business conference during the Games, organised by UKTI, Scottish Enterprise, the Scottish Government and the Commonwealth Business Council, will provide further opportunities to boost trade between the UK and our Commonwealth friends.

“Our role at UKTI is to help companies export and develop their capability to trade internationally. This is why we need to maximise the opportunities that the Commonwealth Games will bring.”

The Commonwealth baton passed through Southampton, Kent and Oxford this week as part of its two-week journey across England.

The latest figures also reveal that the top-five markets for the South East between January and March 2014 were the United States at £1.16b, Germany at £1.02b, France at £764m, China at £685m and the Netherlands at £610m.

Overall South East exports between January and March were at £9.8b, a slight decrease from the first quarter of last year.