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City Guide - London - Business | ||
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Business Business Profile: With an annual GDP larger than either Austria or Sweden, Greater London is the economic powerhouse of Britain. The capital makes a net annual contribution of around six billion Pounds to the UK Exchequer, and its economic growth rate, forecast at 3% for the next three years, is above the national average [LCCI]. Employing around a third of the Greater London workforce and 75% of the 300,000 employees in the City of London, financial and business services are the key to London's success. As the world's leading international financial centre, the City of London boasts an unrivalled variety and concentration of banks, insurance companies and other business services. Investment by banks in the City accounts for nearly 20% of external bank lending globally. The London foreign exchange market is the largest in the world, with a daily turnover of 637 billion US Dollars or 32% of daily business. The City is also the largest international insurance market in the world and the world's largest fund management centre. At the heart of the City is the Bank of England (web site: www.bankofengland.co.uk). Over 500 of the 2750 companies listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE; web site: www.londonstockexchange.com) are foreign companies with a value of 2.85 trillion Pounds. London's closest rival, NASDAQ, lists only 441. The LSE accounted for 63% of global turnover in foreign equities in 1998 and by the end of the year had achieved a record capitalisation of 1352 billion Pounds for UK companies and 2725 billion Pounds for overseas companies. De-mutualisation of the LSE was finally confirmed in March 2000; however, the planned merger with the Deutsche Börse in Frankfurt was one of the LSE's few failures in September 2000. Elsewhere in the capital, IT, accountancy, law, computing, design, media, arts and fashion are booming. The tourism industry continues to grow despite the prohibitive strength of the British Pound. The 1980s and 1990s saw a decline in production and manufacturing jobs and a growth in the service sector in London. Nevertheless, the manufacturing sector has an annual output of over 12 billion Pounds, employs 10% of the capital's workforce and has a productivity rate 26% higher than the national average. Strength lies in modern product-based manufacturing - specialist firms producing niche products - and high-tech companies. Most manufacturing takes place in the outer suburbs, but the centre is important for creative industries and the increasingly prevalent internet start-up companies. The capital's economic achievements are balanced by some less than favourable characteristics: premium office space is expensive and in short supply and the service sector suffers from skills shortages. In July 2000, there were 267,000 unemployed people in Greater London (unemployment rate 7.3%) with great variations between boroughs - Westminster registered a rate of 0.8% while Haringey registered 11.9% [Office for National Statistics]. Business Etiquette Business hours are officially 0900 or 0930 until 1700 or 1730, although in practice many companies have much longer hours. Business in London is intense and fast paced. Extended business lunches and post-work drinks were regarded as part of the modern working environment until relatively recently, but increasingly the emphasis is on hard work and long hours. Some older establishments may be strictly formal, but meetings are usually relatively relaxed and first names are often used after the initial introduction. However, British businesspeople are unlikely to be overtly demonstrative; hand gestures and the use of expressive body language will be minimal, and apart from shaking hands, physical contact should be avoided. Standard dress code is a suit and tie for men and a suit or equivalent for women, but varies greatly depending on the company, with those in the new technologies sectors especially tending towards informality. |