Speaking to the Guardian, experts recently suggested that the UK’s decision to leave the EU (Brexit), could benefit the nation’s trading relationship with the US going forward. Turner Little comments.
Benefits of Brexit
Evidence suggests that Brexit could bring key benefits for small businesses. For instance, after the referendum, the British Pound sunk to its lowest level against the US Dollar since the 1980s. This made it cheaper for foreign consumers to buy products and services from the UK, benefitting exporters.
It has also been implied that after it leaves the EU, the UK could broaden recruitment options for businesses. Instead of recruiting primarily from EU countries, employers may be able to take on more staff from nations like China, India and the US, widening their talent pools. Now experts are arguing that this is not the only advantage Brexit could bring to the UK’s trading relationship with the US.
Strengthening relationships
It is important to note that the UK and the US have one of the strongest trading relationships on earth, valued at over £11tn per annum. Whitehall has expressed a willingness to develop a bilateral trade deal with US President-Elect Donald Trump, when he comes into office in January 2017. The UK’s Department for International Trade has already unveiled three new trade offices in the US.
If a “new and imaginative bilateral economic agreement” is struck, BritishAmerican Business’ Chief Executive Jeffries Briginshaw argues, trade could rise. Explaining, he said: “With the majority of small to medium-sized enterprises [SMEs] in both countries not currently trading internationally, this is a huge untapped market providing massive scope to strengthen and deepen trade ties…
Expanding, Briginshaw said: “The UK and US enjoy a strong trading relationship… However, there are still many barriers to trade that affect SMEs disproportionately when compared to larger companies… Removing these prohibitive barriers would greatly assist SMEs looking to expand overseas.”
Acting independently
Meanwhile Christopher Peacock, a Briton who runs a business in West Virginia, noted that states do not need the Federal government, to strengthen ties with UK businesses. Commenting, West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin, who recently headed a trade delegation to the UK, said: “The states are pretty autonomous in terms of being able to do their own trade without federal approval… We as a state can do business with basically any country that is not at war with the United States.”
Going on, he said: “We have a lot of small businesses in West Virginia that export to the UK and I think those relationships will probably not see any long-term effect [from Brexit]. They will still be trading, buying and selling. Maybe with some multinationals who are shipping through the UK to the continent – there may be some different relationships there.
Finding opportunities
Robin Bingeman, the Managing Director of UK-based email archiving company Cryoserver, also weighed in on this debate. He argued that despite how long it may take to negotiate a new trade deal, there will still be opportunities for UK companies stateside. Going further, he noted: “America is a good neighbour of ours and they do like British technology… I think from the way we are trading with North American organisations (mainly IT departments), they probably don’t really care about regulations or trade agreements – they are just interested in meeting a [client’s] requirement.”
Since the referendum, Bingeman has noticed a difference with how his firm operates with European partners. Elaborating, he said: “I feel that orders I may have expected to receive might have been delayed because there is some uncertainty. I have found this with a number of different territories throughout Europe.” However, Bingeman has not seen any repercussions for how Cryoserver interacts with its US-based partners after the referendum, keeping the firms North American operations stable.
Briginshaw added that for those firms who look, there will be plenty of opportunities to be found in the US, post-Brexit. Going on, he noted that he was “excited” for Brexit, saying that “there will be a natural shake up of things [which] may be daunting for everybody because it is the unknown, but change is good … [and small firms can] metamorphose into what we need to be to take advantage of the moment.”
Setting up internationally
The smart entrepreneur can find an opportunity to increase revenue in any situation, so why should Brexit be any different? If you wish to expand your operations into global territory, to capitalise on the lucrative post-Brexit landscape, it is key that you set up a strong website for your firm, to advertise your products and services abroad. Here at Turner Little, we can provide you with advice on international domain names, so you can access foreign markets easily to capitalise on new opportunities.
Turner Little
Turner Little was founded in 1998 and it has since become a well-established UK based professional Company Registration Agent, Registered Bank Intermediaries and Business Consultants, as well as Trust provider. You can receive our monthly newsletter by signing up using the form below.