UK-based Chinese companies suffered from global instability last year, new research shows
Revenues generated by Chinese companies working in Britain have dropped by almost a third, due to global instability and the impacts of Covid-19, according to new research.
Chinese companies employed 61,000 UK residents contributed £63bn to the British economy in 2021, according to new figures from the Tou Ying Tracker.
The £63bn in revenues generated by Chinese firms in Britain represents a 31.5 per cent drop on the £92bn worth of revenues Chinese companies generated in 2020.
At the same time, Chinese firms now employ 14,000 fewer people than they did in 2020, when they employed a total of 75,000 people.
The Tou Ying tracker shows that only 20 per cent of people employed by Chinese companies live in London, while 30 per cent live in the North West of England.
Simon Bevan, Head of China Britain Business Group, Grant Thornton UK LLP, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly made business more difficult, but trade and investment between the UK and China has held its own.”
“But this was not the only impediment to international trade and investment over the last year,” Bevan said. “Surging energy prices, clogged supply chains, uncertain consumer confidence and inflation all contributed to a lack of confidence about global economic conditions.”
Nonetheless, Chinese companies working in the UK’s private healthcare sector bucked the trend, in increasing their revenues by 40 per cent and growing their headcounts by 14 per cent, the figures show.
“We expect that the UK will remain a key market for Chinese investors, both for those investing for the first time and those with well-established operations in the country,” Bevan added.
“Given its status outside the EU, the style of Chinese investment into the UK may change, as companies make sure they retain a foothold in the EU, but the UK will still likely form an important part of their European strategy.”