Global EditionASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
    World
    Home / World / China-Europe

    China takes top spot as import source for UK

    By BO LEUNG in London | China Daily Global | Updated: 2021-06-04 09:18
    Share
    Share - WeChat

    Nation replaces Germany as British trade with European Union is influenced by Brexit

    The latest statistics show that China has replaced Germany to become Britain's biggest source of imports for the first time since modern records began in 1997.

    The United Kingdom's goods imports from China reached 16.9 billion pounds ($24 billion) in the first quarter of this year, data from the Office for National Statistics showed.

    Its imports from Germany fell to 12.5 billion pounds in the same period, which is believed to have resulted from disrupted UK-EU trade after Brexit.

    Figures from the HM Revenue and Customs of the UK showed that China registered the second-largest value increase month-on-month in March and the largest value increase in year-on-year terms in the same month.

    That is up 455 million pounds ($646 million) and 3.142 billion pounds respectively.

    HMRC also revealed that China accounted for 13 percent of the total value of goods that the UK has imported. This was an increase from 5.5 percent in March 2020.

    However, with the pandemic and Brexit, economists say it's hard to tell if this will be a trend.

    Gayle Allard, a professor of economics at IE University in Spain, said: "It's hard to make definite conclusions from a year during which the UK has experienced not only Brexit, but also the worst experience with the pandemic in Europe in terms of deaths per capita. So we would need to watch the trends for another year at least to find 'normal' patterns."

    She added: "Initially, it looks like Brexit and the supply constraints coming from the pandemic have been very favorable for Chinese exports to the UK. Remember that after Brexit, EU products lost some of their cost advantage in the UK."

    Chris Rowley, a business professor from Kellogg College at the University of Oxford, said UK-China trade relations have been tense in the light of strained diplomatic relations, but trade will continue.

    "Nevertheless, there are trade opportunities, moving beyond more traditional ones, such as foods and drinks, to sectors ranging from pharmaceuticals and aerospace to green energy. Nevertheless, the 'ghost in the machine' is the UK's globally highly competitive financial services and especially fintech," said Rowley, who is also a professor at the Graduate School of Education of Tohoku University in Japan.

    Experts say that Brexit should create more opportunities for UK-oriented Chinese exporters.

    "The pound has fallen since the (Brexit) vote, making EU goods more expensive, and some EU inputs for products manufactured in the UK will also be too expensive. Supply chains will be broken for many products and will need to be remade," Allard said.

    Rowley added: "Brexit's opportunities-flexibilities, nimbleness and speed-could be seized."

    In a separate report, Office for National Statistics data showed that the UK has imported more goods from China than from any other country since the second quarter of 2020.

    The ONS said that out of the UK's top five import partners, China is the only one from which imports grew between the first quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2021.

    Imports of goods from China accounted for 16.1 percent of UK goods imports in the first quarter of 2021 having increased by 65.6 percent compared with the first quarter of 2018, exhibiting a larger increase than exports, the report said. "Goods imports from China had continued to show an upward trend throughout 2020."

    The increase in imports from China in 2020 was boosted by textile fabrics for face masks and personal protective equipment.

    The ONS added that increasing demand for commodities produced by China such as electronic goods "likely explains the increasing imports seen in 2020".

    Rowley added: "The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact here as China has come back earlier and stronger economically than other countries. So, there may be some catch-up from others post-pandemic. Nevertheless, the faster growing economies and markets remain in Asia."

    After leaving the EU, the UK is seeking new trading opportunities.

    In February, the UK government applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement between 11 Pacific Rim nations, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

    Members of the free trade treaty generate more than 13 percent of the world's income, 15 percent of global trade and involve about 500 million people.

    Most Viewed in 24 Hours
    Top
    BACK TO THE TOP
    English
    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    免费无码AV一区二区| 亚洲人成影院在线无码按摩店| 日韩精品无码免费专区午夜 | 精品久久久无码中文字幕| 国产成人无码18禁午夜福利p| 亚洲欧美日韩一区高清中文字幕| 国产日产欧洲无码视频无遮挡| 国产成人麻豆亚洲综合无码精品 | 欧美日韩亚洲中文字幕一区二区三区 | 日韩国产中文字幕| 精品无码人妻一区二区三区不卡| 国产aⅴ无码专区亚洲av麻豆| 亚洲 欧美 国产 日韩 中文字幕 | 免费a级毛片无码| 久久久久成人精品无码中文字幕| 久久伊人中文无码| 亚洲一区无码中文字幕| 免费无码一区二区| 国产亚洲3p无码一区二区| 亚洲成a人片在线观看无码专区| 无码av中文一二三区| 中文字幕一区一区三区| 中文字幕无码人妻AAA片| 亚洲Av无码乱码在线观看性色| 精品久久无码中文字幕| 无码乱人伦一区二区亚洲| 亚洲Av综合色区无码专区桃色| 人妻无码αv中文字幕久久琪琪布 人妻无码精品久久亚瑟影视 | 最近2019年中文字幕一页| 最近中文字幕在线中文视频| 亚洲国产精品无码久久久久久曰| 2024最新热播日韩无码| 97免费人妻无码视频| 精品无码国产污污污免费网站 | 中文成人久久久久影院免费观看| 中文字幕免费高清视频| 久久五月精品中文字幕| 人妻无码αv中文字幕久久琪琪布 人妻无码精品久久亚瑟影视 | 精品爆乳一区二区三区无码av| 久久久久久久亚洲Av无码| 国产精品无码专区|