The United Kingdom Country Report: GDP data and GDP forecasts; economic, financial and trade information; the best banks in The United Kingdom; country and population overview
DATA ON GDP AND ECONOMIC INFORMATION
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Central bank |
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Bank of England (2009) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold |
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$57.3 billion (31 December 2007 estimate) |
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Gross Domestic Product - GDP |
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2,645,593 millions of US dollars (2009) |
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GDP (Purchasing Power Parity) |
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2,176,263 millions of International dollars (2009) |
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Real GDP growth |
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| 2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
| 2.5% |
2.1% |
2.8% |
3.0% |
2.2% |
2.9% |
2.6% |
0.7% |
2009: -4.4% (estimate)
2010: 0.9% (forecast)
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GDP per capita - current prices |
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$35,728 (2009 estimate) |
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GDP per capita - PPP |
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$35,165 International Dollars (2009 estimate) |
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GDP (PPP) - share of world total |
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3.03% (2010 forecast) |
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GDP - composition by sector |
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- agriculture: 0.9%
- industry: 22.8%
- services: 76.2% (2008 estimate)
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Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (% of GDP) |
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1.80% (2006) |
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Inflation |
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3.6% (2008)
1.9% (2009)
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Unemployment rate |
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5.5% (2008)
7.6% (2009 estimate)
9.3% (2010 forecast)
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Household saving rates |
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-0.19% (2008) |
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Public debt (% of GDP)
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46.91% (2008) |
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Government bond ratings |
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Standard & Poor's: AAA/Negative/A-1+
Moody's rating: Aaa
Moody's outlook: STA
(Foreign Currency Government Bond Ratings; Data last updated Nov 2009)
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Market value of publicly traded shares |
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US$3.859 trillion (31 December 2007) |
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Largest companies in The United Kingdom |
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BP, HSBC Holdings, Vodafone, Tesco, Barclays, GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca (2009) |
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FT top 50 banks in the world by market value 2009 |
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- HSBC
- Standard Chartered
- Royal Bank of Scotland
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DATA ON TRADE AND COMPETITIVENESS
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Current account balance |
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US$ -101.454 billion (2008) |
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Shares in world total merchandising export |
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3.14% (2007) |
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Shares in world total commercial services export |
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8.29% (2007) |
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Total exports |
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US$468.7 billion f.o.b. (2008 estimate) |
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Export commodities |
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manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco |
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Total imports |
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US$645.7 billion f.o.b. (2008 estimate) |
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Import commodities |
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manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs |
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Exports - major partners |
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US 14.2%, Germany 11.1%, France 8.1%, Ireland 8%, Netherlands 6.8%, Belgium 5.3%, Spain 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2007) |
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Imports - major partners |
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Germany 14.2%, US 8.6%, China 7.3%, Netherlands 7.3%, France 6.9%, Belgium 4.7%, Norway 4.7%, Italy 4.2% (2007) |
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FDI inflows |
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| 2007 |
2008 |
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| US$196.390 million |
US$96.939 million |
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|
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FDI outflows |
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| 2007 |
2008 |
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| US$272.384 million |
US$134.019 million(2009) |
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Value of cross-border M&A, by country of purchaser |
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| 2007 |
2008 |
2009 (Jan-Jun) |
| US$221.900 million(2009) |
US$51.758 million(2009) |
US$4.111 million(2009) |
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Cross-border M&A deals worth over $3 billion completed in 2007
(Acquiring company, Acquired company, Country of the acquired company, Value of the deal)
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RFS Holdings BV, ABN-AMRO Holding NV, Netherlands, $98.2 billion
Rio Tinto PLC,Alcan Inc,Canada, $37.6 billion
AstraZeneca PLC, MedImmune Inc, United States, $14.6 billion
Vodafone Group PLC, Hutchison Essar Ltd, India, $12.7 billion
National Grid PLC,KeySpan Corp, United States, $7.4 billion
TDF SPV, TDF SA, France, $6.4 billion
Charterhouse Capital Partners VII, Vivarte SA, France, $4.6 billion
BAE Systems Inc, Armor Holdings Inc, United States, $4.3 billion
CVC Asia Pacific Ltd Publishing & Broadcasting Australia Ltd, Australia, $3.4 billion
Investor Group, Santander Central Hispano SA, Spain, $3.0 billion
Charterhouse Capital Partners VIII
(2009)
(for a monthly update on M&A click here ) |
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Cross-border M&A deals worth over $3 billion completed in 2008
(Acquiring company, Acquired company, Country of the acquired company, Value of the deal)
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Imperial Tobacco Overseas Holdings Ltd, Altadis SA, Spain, $17.9 billion
Serafina Holdings Ltd, Intelsat Ltd, Bermuda, $16.0 billion
Lake Acquisitions Ltd, British Energy Group PLC, United Kingdom, $6.1 billion
Investor Group, Steen & Strom ASA, Norway, $4.3 billion
British American Tobacco PLC, House of Prince A/S, Denmark, $4.1 billion
Reed Elsevier Group PLC, ChoicePoint Inc, United States, $3.8 billion
Eni UK Holding PLC, Burren Energy PLC, United Kingdom, $3.7 billion
Anglo American PLC, IronX Mineracao SA, Brazil, $3.5 billion
BG Group PLC, Queensland Gas Co Ltd, Australia, $3.3 billion
(2009) (2009)
(for a monthly update on M&A click here ) |
Best countries for doing business (ranking by country on a basis of 181, the first is the best)
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Overall ranking: 5(2009) (2009)
Subcategories:
Starting a business: 16
Employing workers: 35(2009)
Registering property: 23(2009)
Getting credit: 2
Protecting investors: 10(2008 estimate)
Trading across border: 16(2009)
(2009) |
Global competitiveness ranking
(ranking by country on a basis of 133, the first is the best) |
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13 (2009/2010)(2009) |
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Economic freedom index
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79.0 (2009)
(100=totally free 0=totally repressed ) |
COUNTRY AND POPULATION OVERVIEW
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Time zone |
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UTC 0 |
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Total area |
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242,900 km2 (2006) |
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Capital |
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London (2009) |
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Currency |
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British pounds (GBP) (2009) |
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Government type |
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constitutional monarchy and Commonwealth realm (2009) |
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Languages |
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English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland) |
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Religions |
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Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1% (2001 census) |
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Total population |
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61.14 million (2009 forecast) |
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Urban population as % of total population |
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90% (2006) |
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Population median age |
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39.0 years (2006) |
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Population growth rate |
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0.40% (2006) |
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Life expectancy |
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79 years (2007) |
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Adult literacy |
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- |
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% of population living on less than $2 a day |
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- |
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Inequality of wealth distribution (Gini index) |
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36 (1999)
(0=perfect equality, 100=absolute inequality) |
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Freedom House rating |
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Political Rights: 1
Civil Liberties: 1 (2009)
(1 represents the most free, 7 the least free) |
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Total telephone subscribers as % of population |
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173.90% (2007)
(sum of fixed telephone lines and mobile cellular subscribers)
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Internet users as % of total population |
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72.00% (2007) |
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Cost of living - Mercer index
(ranking by city on a basis of 143; the 1st is the most expensive and the 143rd is the least expensive; New York is the base city)
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New York - Index: 100 (Base)
London: 16th - Index: 92.7
Birmingham: 125th - Index: .64
Glasgow: 129th - Index: 63.3 (2009) |
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CO2 emissions
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9.7934 (2004)
(metric tons of CO2 per capita)
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GLOBAL FINANCE RANKINGS AND AWARDS
WORLD'S BEST FOREIGN EXCHANGE BANKS
2009:
- COUNTRY WINNERS RBS (National, 2009)
2008:
- Honorable Mention Western Europe Barclays Capital (Western Europe, 2008)
- COUNTRY WINNERS Barclays Capital (National, 2008)
- Best Online FX Trading Systems / Honorable Mention Best Bank Barclays Capital (Global, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST TREASURY & CASH MANAGEMENT BANKS & PROVIDERS
2009:
- Best Bank for Liquidity Management RBS (Western Europe, 2009)
- Best Provider of Money Market Funds Barclays Global Investors (Western Europe, 2009)
- Best CLS-Linked Bank Offering RBS (Western Europe, 2009)
2008:
- Best Bank for Liquidity Management Standard Chartered (Africa, 2008)
- Best Provider of Money Market Funds Barclays Global Investors (Western Europe, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST TRADE FINANCE PROVIDERS
2009:
- COUNTRY WINNERS HSBC (National, 2009)
2008:
- COUNTRY WINNERS HSBC (National, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST DEVELOPED MARKET BANKS
2009:
2008:
WORLD'S BEST SUPPLY CHAIN FINANCE PROVIDERS
2009:
- GLOBAL WINNERS / Best Global Supply Chain Finance Provider - Bank HSBC (Global, 2009)
- GLOBAL WINNERS / Best Payables Supplier Financing Solution HSBC (Global, 2009)
- GLOBAL WINNERS / Best Pre-Shipment Financing Solution Standard Chartered (Global, 2009)
- REGIONAL WINNERS RBS (Western Europe, 2009)
2008:
- GLOBAL WINNERS / Best Global Supply Chain Finance Provider - Bank HSBC (Global, 2008)
- GLOBAL WINNERS / Best Pre-Shipment Financing Solution HSBC (Global, 2008)
WORLD'S MID YEAR SAFEST BANKS RANKINGS
(ranking of the 50 safest banks in the world; the first is the safest) 2009:
- HSBC Holdings plc (18, 2009)
- Nationwide Building Society (46, 2009)
WORLD'S BEST GLOBAL BANKS
2009:
- Consumer Bank HSBC (Global, 2009)
- Emerging Markets Standard Chartered (Global, 2009)
- Sub-Custody HSBC (Global, 2009)
2008:
- Consumer Bank HSBC (Global, 2008)
- Sub-Custody HSBC (Global, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST DERIVATIVES PROVIDERS
2009:
- Best Interest Rate Derivatives Provider RBS (Europe, 2009)
2008:
- Best Interest Rate Derivatives Provider RBS (Europe, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST INTERNET BANKS
2009:
- COUNTRY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks HSBC (National, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best consumer Internet Banks/Best Investment Management Services HSBC (Europe, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best consumer Internet Banks/Best Online Consumer Credit Site HSBC (Europe, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks/Best Investment Management Services HSBC (Europe, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks/Best Online Cash Management Site HSBC (Europe, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks/Best Web Site Design HSBC (Europe, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks/Best Integrated Corporate Bank Site HSBC (Europe, 2009)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks/Best Information Security Initiatives HSBC (Europe, 2009)
2008:
- Best Global Consumer Internet Bank HSBC (2008)
- COUNTRY WINNERS / Best Consumer Internet Banks First Direct, Division of HSBC (National, 2008)
- COUNTRY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks HSBC (National, 2008)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best consumer Internet Banks/Best Investment Management Services HSBC (Europe, 2008)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best consumer Internet Banks/Best Website Design First Direct, Division of HSBC (Europe, 2008)
- REGIONAL SUB-CATEGORY WINNERS / Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks/Best Trade Finance Services Standard Chartered (Europe, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST ISLAMIC FINANCE INSTITUTIONS
2009:
- REGIONAL WINNERS European Islamic Investment Bank (Europe, 2009)
- Best Asset Management Company HSBC Amanah (Global, 2009)
- COUNTRY WINNERS Islamic Bank of Britain (National, 2009)
2008:
- COUNTRY WINNERS HSBC Amanah (National, 2008)
WORLD'S SAFEST BANKS
2008:
- OVERALL SAFEST Lloyds TSB (National, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST SUB CUSTODIANS
2009:
- COUNTRY WINNERS HSBC (National, 2009)
2008:
- COUNTRY WINNERS HSBC (National, 2008)
WORLD'S BEST INVESTMENT BANKS
2009:
- COUNTRY WINNERS Rothschild (National, 2009)
- COUNTRY WINNERS Morgan Stanley (National, 2009)
- LEGAL ADVISERS Linklaters (Global, 2009)
- LEGAL ADVISERS Linklaters (Western Europe, 2009)
- LEGAL ADVISERS Clifford Chance (Central & Eastern Europe, 2009)
- LEGAL ADVISERS Clifford Chance (Middle East/Africa, 2009)
- SECTORS / Power Rothschild (Global, 2009)
2008:
- COUNTRY WINNERS JPMorgan Cazenove (National, 2008)
CENTRAL BANKER REPORT CARD
2009:
ARTICLES AND COUNTRIES REPORTS FROM GLOBAL FINANCE ARCHIVE
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