UK is still 'favourite' investment destination

News Article - 09 June 2009
Category: Business

The UK has remained the top investment destination in Europe for the last ten years, according to the Ernst & Young Investment Monitor (EIM).

Investment in London increased by 170 per cent since 2001, although the figures are not widespread. North-west and Welsh investment went down by over 50 per cent. The EIM reports that this focus on the capital could be due to the shift away from the manufacturing sector - typically based furthest away from London - to the service sector.

Industry experts told Manufacturingtalk that this shift in sector can be attributed to increasingly competitive labour costs in the rest of Europe and the Far East

Chairman of Ernst & Young Mark Otty said: "A skilled workforce, a world-class services sector, location and language have all helped the UK outperform the rest of the continent in attracting foreign capital over the last decade."

The UK has generated 5,539 projects over the last ten years, 200 per cent more than Germany and 43 per cent more than France.

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