United Kingdom No Longer on Global List of Top 10 Producing Countries
The UK is the only one among the world's most industrialized countries that does not have a plan for the development of production sectors
For the first time in history, the UK is no longer on the prestigious list of the top 10 industrialized manufacturing nations. According to analysis by the British Association of Manufacturing Sectors Make UK and reported in the pages of The Times, “in 2022, the UK has suddenly dropped from eighth to 12th position,” leaving it behind Russia and Mexico, two countries that rose to eighth and seventh positions respectively.
Analysts at Make UK attributed Russia’s rise to “unprecedented growth in the defense industry, which accounts for more than 6% of the country’s total GDP,” while Mexico’s rise is linked to “billions of dollars of investment” in the Latin American country offered by China.
As before, the top two countries were China in first place and the USA in second.
As for the UK’s manufacturing performance in 2023, the UK industry produced 217 billion pounds ($278 billion) worth of goods. England’s main productive area was the northwest of the country (29.5 billion pounds, or $37.8 billion).
The main destinations for British exports were the USA, Germany, and the Netherlands.
As the Times reminds us, industry leaders have repeatedly criticized the previous Conservative government for the inconsistency of its industrial policy. According to Make UK CEO Stephen Phipson, “the UK is the single most industrialized country in the world without a national plan for the manufacturing sectors.”