UK finance lifted by growth in last quarter of 2013
THE COMPETITIVENESS of the UK’s financial sector is improving with the general economic upswing, according to research seen exclusively by City A.M.
TheCityUK’s latest assessment of the sector’s health brings together 23 different factors that affect finance and indicate whether the industry is improving or declining.
A majority of the basket of indicators are improving again, for the fifth quarter in a row. Over the last 12 months, on average 13 indicators have got stronger, while only three have receded, with the others staying flat.
Some of the measures were still declining: new City job vacancies, foreign exchange turnover and derivatives turnover were among the seven which registered an unimpressive performance.
However, the sector’s trade balance grew for the first time since the first quarter of 2013, up from £11.9bn in the third quarter to £13.4bn in the fourth. Meanwhile the office space market is rising toward record levels.