‘Can-do’ continent and major partner for UK businesses
North America - The United States and Canada - has an economy almost ten times the size of the UK, a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of £21.7 trillion, making it a substantially larger market than the post-Brexit EU 27 at £15.2 trillion or China’s £14.1 trillion.
Canada’s £1.7 trillion GDP is 54 per cent of the UK’s £2.4 trillion; with a population of 40.7 million, that gives it a similar GDP per capita.
The US is home to vast and varied landscapes with abundant natural resources including petroleum and natural gas and it also benefits from the most developed, liquid, flexible, and efficient financial markets in the world.
The country is also a world leader in research and development and consistently ranked among the best markets internationally for its overall competitiveness and ease of doing business.
While famed for an entrepreneurial, ‘can-do’ mentality which it promotes, the US can also be surprisingly cautious, conservative and old-fashioned, making it a place of extremes.
Collectively, UK companies invest more in the US than in any other country and the UK is the country’s largest single foreign direct investor.
Currently, more than 40,000 UK companies export to the US, which represents about £191.5 billion annually, or 22.2% per cent by value of UK exports, compared to 41.3% per cent of sales to the EU 27. The UK has a significant trade surplus with the US.
Outside the EU, the US is the most important trading partner for almost all UK regions and nations. More than a million US jobs are supported by UK-owned companies operating in the US and every US state has jobs connected to investment from a UK company.
Meanwhile, Canada, also has a ‘business-friendly’ environment built around many ‘world-class’ cities as well as the most highly educated workforce amongst Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.
Within the G7, the world’s seven largest advanced economies, Canada comes top for fewest days to establish a new business, lowest total effective taxes, good living conditions and quality of life, and being the most reputable country.
Chamber International’s partner for North America, GO International, is led by three highly experienced international business people, Achim Cremer, Mark Ashton, and Paula Grizzard. Mark spent five years in the USA managing the North American sales and service office of a UK textile machinery company and has been involved in transatlantic trade support since 2014.
The GO International team in the UK has a set of close working partnerships in the USA and Canada, covering key regions and industry sectors, and providing a 'one-stop shop' for market assessment/research, business strategy, market launch and expansion, marketing and sales support, capital investment incentives, recruitment, and accounting, banking, tax, immigration and other legal matters. GO International also provides a 'one-stop shop' approach for Canadian and US companies investing in the UK.
Contact us for further details and market enquiries.
