Business News Round Up (30/03/2023)
Manchester most attractive city for investors – report
Manchester is set to be the UK’s most attractive city for institutional investors in 2023, according to new research conducted by law firm Brabners. In a study of more than 400 UK and US-based institutional investors, Manchester is ranked as the number one city for investment in 2023, ahead of London. Cardiff was ranked third in the inaugural Brabners Northern Investment Index report, while Liverpool and Leeds ranked joint sixth overall. Brabners’ analysis compared the intentions of institutional investors with existing interests in the UK and what they mean for the future of businesses in the North of England. Half of investors (50 per cent) intended to increase their investment in the region during 2023, with similar numbers (52 per cent) having already done so in 2022. Buoyed by the pound’s recent relative weakness against the dollar, investors based in the US (55 per cent) were more likely to increase their investment in the UK this year compared to their British counterparts (47 per cent). Despite recent findings by the IPPR North think tank that showed the North receives some of the lowest levels of investment among the world’s advanced economies, more than half (54 per cent) of the investment managers surveyed had a positive view of the region as a place for business growth.
https://www.insidermedia.com/news/north-west/manchester-most-attractive-city-for-investors-report
Scottish economy expected to return to calendar year growth in 2024, says EY Scottish ITEM Club Forecast
While 2023 is expected to play host to continued challenging conditions, the Scottish economy should see a return to calendar year growth in 2024 with Gross Value Added (GVA) rising by 1.6%, helped by a 2.3% increase in consumer spending, as employment and real wages recover. This is according to the latest EY ITEM Club’s Scotland Forecast. Scottish GVA is anticipated to fall by 0.6% in 2023, with decline largely concentrated in the first half of the year. Some sectors can expect to see growth, led by health and social care (1.2%), education administrative and support services (1.1%), and public administration (0.8%) (page 22). Marginal rises are also forecast in professional, scientific, and technical sector (0.3%), as well as in construction (0.1%). Scotland’s economy grew strongly in 2021 as it recovered from the pandemic, before slowing in the second half of last year. The EY ITEM Club estimates that Scotland’s GVA rose 5.3% in 2022, a slowdown from 7.9% in 2021, with 2022’s growth concentrated in the year’s first half. This pattern broadly mirrored the experience of the UK – and of much of the world – and reflected the impact on the global economy caused by the war in Ukraine and its consequences for confidence, supply chains, and energy prices and inflation.
https://www.ey.com/en_uk/news/2023/03/scottish-economy-expected-to-return-to-growth-in-2024
Better connectivity worth £2.2 billion to Greater Manchester SMEs
New research from Three Business has revealed that better connectivity among Greater Manchester SMEs could contribute an extra £2.2 billion a year to the city-region’s economy. With growth front of mind for SMEs, over half (53%) of local businesses said their business could grow faster if they had access to better tech (compared to 43% across the UK). Nearly half (48%) think that their business could be left behind because of it (compared to 39% across the country). The analysis, conducted in partnership with Censuswide and Development Economics, also found that while retention is crucial to growing a business, two in five (44%) Manchester businesses think they could lose good employees, compared to the UK average of a third (35%) – and are, therefore, looking to improve their connectivity. In response, Three Business is launching a new grant scheme worth £150,000 for SMEs in Manchester, with support from Greater Manchester Chambers of Commerce. The grants will equip local SMEs with access to Three’s 5G network – the fastest in Manchester* – as well as a team of Three Business specialists. Businesses can apply to receive one of several 5G Business SIM packages, as well as 5G Business Broadband for two years.
£50,000 data skills boost for Tay cities region
Funding to help workers adapt to the demands of increasingly digitalised, automated and data-driven workplaces is being extended to the Tay Cities region after upskilling more than 500 learners in Edinburgh and South East Scotland. Funded by the Scottish Government, this new partnership between The Data Lab and the Tay Cities Digital Skills Project, aims to address the digital skills gap, support diversity and prepare participants for the changing world of work through its small grants scheme. Since November 2020, the Data Lab’s Data Skills for Work Programme has supported delivery of training in coding, data analytics, data visualisation and more to over 500 learners. Successful providers have included tech innovators; CodeClan, Code Division, the Institute of Data and Marketing, the University of Dundee, and Jumping Rivers. Colleges, universities and other training providers in Dundee, Angus, North East Fife and Perth & Kinross are invited to apply for up to £10,000 of funding to deliver courses, for up to 20 participants.