Yorkshire has been named the top exporter of manufacturing goods outside of London.
The latest official figures show there were 22 exporting companies per 10,000 residents in Yorkshire in 2017. This is more per person than anywhere else in the Northern Powerhouse region and across Scotland and Wales. Exports from Yorkshire increased by 14% between 2016 and 2017, the strongest growth from across the Northern Powerhouse.
Yorkshire’s strong and enduring industrial base has been identified as one of the key reasons for the surge in exporting. Almost 10% of the region’s workforce is employed in the manufacturing sector.
Major firms are investing in the region. From Siemens UK investing up to £200 million in a state-of-the-art train factory in Goole to Sirius Minerals announcing a revolutionary mineral transport system in Wilton creating billions of pounds in exports, Yorkshire continues to build on its reputation as the beating industrial heart of the North.
The region also boasts the highest proportion of exports going to Sub-Saharan Africa and is above the UK average exports going to Latin America and the Caribbean.
Yorkshire’s high export figures can be attributed to the wide variety of goods and products across multiple sectors the region produces. The region has a strong pedigree in sector from advanced manufacturing to traditional farming. The food sector follows the trend set by the rest of the region with exports of food and animals growing by 11.6% between Q1 2017 and Q1 2018.
The county is also home to the headquarters of Tata Steel, Northern Foods, Northern Monk Brewery Co, a world-renowned farming industry and some of the most iconic household brands like Fox’s biscuits and Cravendale milk.
Northern Powerhouse Minister, Jake Berry MP, said:
This Yorkshire Day, let’s recognise the tremendous achievements of the entrepreneurs, business owners, manufacturers and innovators who are leading the charge of the Northern Powerhouse with an export-driven economy at its heart.
Yorkshire has a rapidly growing network of businesses who are part of our Northern Powerhouse partners programme. These latest figures show what can be achieved when government and business work together and I encourage local companies of all sizes to join our coalition of private and public sector partners taking the Northern Powerhouse forward.