Business News Round Up (24/06/2024)
UK Europe’s most attractive hub for financial services investment
The UK continues to be Europe’s most attractive location for foreign direct investment into financial services, according to new research from EY. The country is currently home to a third of all such projects, growing by 7% over last year. An FDI is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business, in real estate or in productive assets such as factories in one country by an entity based in another country. The cumulative value of FDIs around the world had fallen steeply in the years before the pandemic – crashing to a decade-long low in 2018 – but has been rebounding rapidly since. In 2021, the level of FDIs had already increased to more than $2 trillion, for the first time since 2016. The UK is among the leading beneficiaries of that rallying market.
Research reveals ‘alarming reduction’ in SME home building
New research has revealed an “alarming reduction” in the small and medium (SME) home building sector in Scotland. According to a report published by representative body Homes for Scotland (HFS), the proportion of new homes sold by those building between three and 49 homes per annum has fallen from around 40% in 2017 to 20% in 2023. In the context of what is now a national housing emergency – and at a time when 28% of Scottish households (693,000) are in some form of housing The research found that SME home builders are key to unlocking the brownfield sites which the Scottish Government has said it wants to prioritise. The report showed that before the financial crisis, SMEs were delivering 3,000 more new homes each year than they are now. A return to this level could support an additional 13,200 jobs.
https://www.insider.co.uk/news/research-reveals-alarming-reduction-sme-33092360
Port of Aberdeen to become ‘smartest’ in UK with £1m investment
The Port of Aberdeen is set to become the ‘smartest’ in the UK with a £1 million investment in 5G and Internet of Things (IoT) networks. Connectivity and infrastructure at the port will be massively upgraded with CCTV and security systems set to benefit after networking firm North was appointed to oversee the overhaul. Private 5G, public Wi-Fi and IoT networks will be rolled out to support a range of solutions to improve operations and customer experience. The partnership follows the transformational £420 million expansion of the port’s South Harbour which represented the largest marine infrastructure project in the local trust’s history and officially opened in September 2023. North has designed and deployed an expansive CCTV and security system across the port’s North Harbour and South Harbour. This includes integrated video management systems, automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) and access control.
https://futurescot.com/port-of-aberdeen-to-become-smartest-in-uk-with-1m-investment/
Edinburgh tops target list for Middle East investors
Edinburgh has leapfrogged the north of England powerhouse cities as the top choice for Middle East investors looking to put their money in the UK property market, according to new research. A third (33%) of enquiries from investors from the Middle East (predominantly UAE and Saudi Arabia) so in the first half of this year, have been for real estate investment opportunities in and around Edinburgh. The research from property investment company IP Global reveals that this is sharply up from last year when fewer than 1 in 10 enquiries (8.5%) about Edinburgh came from Middle East investors. In the year to date, Edinburgh has received more enquiries than York, Manchester and Sheffield, though the north of England is still proving highly appealing to UAE and Saudi buyers. These three cities account for more than half (56%) of enquiries.
https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2024/06/edinburgh-tops-target-list-for-middle-east-investors/