LONDON (Reuters) – The UK lost market share in the United States, Germany and China during the COVID-19 pandemic due to chaos in global trade, Brexit and low productivity, according to a new survey published on Monday.
The UK performed particularly poorly due to long-term stagnation in productivity growth, according to the report by Aston University’s Lloyd’s Banking Group Center for Business Prosperity.
While all countries struggled with the turmoil of COVID-19, the United Kingdom lost market share in its largest export markets – the United States and Germany, the survey showed.
“In some major export destinations – Germany, the United Kingdom and China – the United Kingdom appears to have suffered a more pronounced decline, to experience a slower recovery and to see its global competitiveness decline,” the report said.
“The UK’s decline in exports to the US seemed the most pronounced in absolute and relative terms and the longest among the major European countries (except for France).”
Between 2017 and 2019, the United Kingdom increased total exports to Germany by 8.5% – less than the export growth achieved by Italy (12%), the Netherlands (14%) and Spain (20%), in addition to the United States (24%).
“This, to some extent, shows a picture of a slowdown in UK exports to Germany after the 2016 Brexit referendum, which may indicate some dissociation between the two economies,” said economists Jun Du and Oleksandr Shepotylo in the report. .
The survey, based on United Nations trade statistics, also indicates that the UK has lost market share in China. on here
“The combination of COVID, Brexit and the UK’s long-term productivity challenges will put British companies in an adverse position for the foreseeable future,” said the report.
The UK’s relatively low productivity has been confusing economies for years: explanations range from low employee qualifications and low investment in research to demand-side factors such as the financial crisis.
($ 1 = 0.7225 pounds)
Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge, edited by Louise Heavens