| Operating as the
international business development arm of the US Government,
the US Commercial Service in the UK provides customised
solutions and business counselling services to US businesses
seeking to enter or grow in the global marketplace.
We measure our success on the basis of our clients’
success and their satisfaction with our business facilitation
services and support. We work with our colleagues in
105 Export Assistance Centres in the US, our HMG counterparts
and strategic partners, such as BritishAmerican Business
Inc (BABi), the British-American Business Council (BABC)
and many others, to develop business relationships and
new business opportunities between our clients and potential
trade and investment partners in the UK.
Our two countries share a long and fascinating economic
history that dates back over 350 years and is the bedrock
of our transatlantic partnership. The US Commercial
Service is very pleased to have had a role during the
past 23 years, in helping to write the current chapter
on our forward-looking and very positive commercial
relationship.
Despite the bilateral trade differences and disputes
that have received a great deal of attention in recent
times, US/UK bilateral trade relations have been essentially
trouble-free. When problems have arisen, we have demonstrated
the political will and desire on both sides to work
together to resolve these issues quickly and amicably.
The magnitude of our modern day trade flows, with total
trade turnover at nearly £41bn ($75bn) in 2002
and reaching approximately £42bn ($77bn) in 2003,
stands as a testament to our unique relationship and
long history of economic cooperation. Our two-way trade
in services adds another £33-39bn ($60-70bn) to
the annual ledger.
Overall, the UK ranks as our largest export market in
Europe (and fourth largest in the world) for goods and
our largest export market in the world for services.
At the same time, the US is the UK’s single largest
export market. Our bilateral investment figures are
even more astounding, with the US and the UK being each
other’s largest foreign investors. US direct investment
in the UK stood at £139bn ($255bn) in 2002 and
UK direct investment in the US totalled approximately
£153bn ($280bn) in same year.
The fact that our commercial relationship is critical
to the health of our respective domestic economies is
undeniable. This relationship impacts on the lives and
well-being of no less than one million workers and their
families in each of our countries, and the lives of
millions upon millions of our local consumers and travellers
who benefit from our open two-way trade in goods and
services.
Our goal in 2004 and beyond is to keep building on the
positive lessons learned from our economic history and
shared economic benefits; continue our positive work
with public and private sector partners in the UK; and
help secure a more competitive and open transatlantic
marketplace. We already have the world’s most
dynamic and integrated economic partnership between
our two nations. Now we must endeavour to include all
members of the EU and every exportready US and UK small
to medium enterprise (SME) in the picture through greater
participation in our transatlantic dialogue, mutual
recognition of standards, increased regulatory co-operation,
and productive multilateral engagement. Jointly and
by example, we can make the benefits of fair trade and
economic cooperation better understood and more accessible
to our neighbours and our companies, both big and small.
We look forward to working with our partners in the
UK to identify and remove obstacles to our future economic
growth and prosperity and to facilitate increased productivity
and job creation on both sides of the ocean through
our trade and investment. We look forward to working
with you in this endeavour.
For information, contact:
US Embassy of the United States of America
24 Grosvenor Square, London, W1A 1AE
Tel: + 44 (0)20 7408 8019
E-mail: london.office.box@mail.doc.gov
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