Our annual healthcheck of 63 UK cities this year focuses on exports. It asks where cities export to globally, what they sell, and how much.
With the UK leaving the European Union, big decisions need to be taken around international trade relations. With that in mind, this year’s Cities Outlook explores how much the 62 biggest British cities export, which goods and services they specialise in, and where the exports go.
By setting out the size of their exports and their markets, Cities Outlook shows cities where their challenges and opportunities lie as the UK looks to increase exports in the years ahead. It reviews the extent to which cities depend on individual industries for their exports and what proposed trade deals are likely to mean for them.
For national government, it provides insights about the geographic impact of potential trade deals. It also considers the relationship between exports and productivity at the city level, and the implications this has for both the attempts by the Government to raise productivity, and for its place-based industrial strategy.