This factsheet shows how Bristol compares to the five most similar European cities in size and industrial structure. These are: Rotterdam (Netherlands) Essen (Germany) Düsseldorf (Germany) Dortmund (Germany) Dresden (Germany).
Comparing cities in this way helps us to understand more about how well UK cities are competing on an international scale because it groups cities with similar industrial structures, rather than on their resulting economic performance. The factsheet also compares the relative strengths and weaknesses of Bristol to its European counterparts on variables such as skills, employment and productivity.
City group characteristics
This group of large cities has a relatively small manufacturing base but a large business services base. The public sector is also slightly smaller than seen in many UK cities.
Population
Industrial structure
Key
- Manufacturing, mining and utilities 2011
- Business services 2011
- Public services 2011
- Other private services 2011
- Other sectors 2011
Overall economic performance
Bristol is an average performer within its group. However in many cases it ranks within the top 100 of all the European cities studied. It has a particularly highly skilled population relative to its group, and performs well on jobs and GVA too.