The blurry outline of the landscape is emerging. And it has changed, we just don’t yet know exactly how.
When I wrote my last article we were in the very early stages of lockdown, with fear and uncertainty as the prevailing emotions around the world. Since then many parts of the world have come through the first pass of the virus, though some are still in the thick of it. Political strategies have moved from being nationwide to more regional or hyper localised.
by Tony Goodman MBE.
Well at least we aren’t all worrying about Brexit anymore! The complex situation arising from the Covid-19 global pandemic has caused widespread confusion but has not stopped all trade, and exports are continuing, though they are undoubtedly rapidly slowing. The immediate implication for most businesses is to go into survival mode, changing plans and building contingencies whether their business has been affected or not.
If you have been affected by a slowdown in your business,
So now we know…or do we really?
by Tony Goodman MBE
Whilst we do now have the certainty that we are leaving the EU on 31 January 2020, we will then be entering the 11 month limbo of the transition period up to 31 December 2020. Or is it certain? That is what the UK Government are saying, but the EU are making noises saying that it won’t be possible in that timescale.
by Tony Goodman MBE
Halloween has passed us by and in spite of promises that we would have finally reached a conclusion, we are still in Brexit limbo. Politicians are out canvassing, knocking on doors like some delayed reaction, continuous loop of trick or treat, whilst every business I have been speaking to simply wants this uncertainty to end. It has reached the point when the uncertainty itself is causing more difficulties than either leaving or staying.
As we publish this, the UK political landscape has gone through yet another seismic shift, and we seem to be no nearer a clear exit plan for the UK’s departure from the EU. In fact, new legislation has just come in which makes the case for a further extension to the leaving date from 31 October 2019 to 31 January 2020. GM Business Connect caught up with Bryn Atherton, Commercial Director of Allseas Global Logistics, and asked him about what impact Brexit was having on Allseas;
by Tony Goodman MBE
In the week when we learned that UK exports had risen to a record £647 billion it seems opportune to look at where those exports are going to. With an overall growth of 4% for goods and services, goods alone showed an increase of 4.7% to an annual £357 billion or 55% of the total. This marks a run of 38 consecutive months of export growth on an annual rolling basis. The level of exports as a percentage of GDP still falls woefully behind our European neighbours,
If you ask companies that export whether they regret it, you will rarely hear any negativity. There is a very good reason for that; exporting helps the bottom line as well as the top line, often more easily than with home sales. This would be obvious if you had a very limited market opportunity because of highly specialised products or services, but it also applies to far more competitive market places. British products have a justifiable reputation for quality, design and innovation and can hold their place across the world.
The secret to safe and smooth International Exporting
Brexit might be stirring concerns for EU exporters, but interestingly, this ripple effect isn’t drifting out to International waters. Despite the current commotion in the Commons, overseas trade is still thriving – with ships sailing between the UK and other continents undisturbed. The International export market is undoubtedly aware of Brexit, but remains as strong as ever – with huge eastern nations like China refusing to turn their back on Britain despite the political and economic uncertainty here at home.
At the time of writing this piece, I have absolutely no idea what is going to happen with Brexit and nor, I suspect, does anyone else, including the Government. So, I can understand if you are mystified by my headline!
What makes this a great time to start exporting?
“The ongoing, obsessive, Brexit confusion has so dominated the agenda of public discourse that it has absorbed the oxygen of opportunity. Whilst Brexit is perhaps the most important constitutional change in a generation,
The Government recently launched an Export strategy, building on their industrial strategy, that targets increasing UK exports to 35% of GDP from the current 29%.
Is that ambitious?
“It would be disappointing, except that I hope it is only a first step. We are terrible compared to our near neighbours – Germany at 47%, Netherlands and Belgium over 80% and Spain, France, Italy more than us. Should you be exporting just to help the country achieve its potential?
