UK still a good market despite challenges - German-British Chamber

According to the autumn survey from the German-British business community, only a quarter of respondents expected their business to perform better over the coming 12 months.

In terms of the overall development of the UK economy, firms take a broadly similar view, as 27 per cent expect the UK economy to perform better or significantly better over the coming twelve months.

In the past, companies were more optimistic about their own operations than for the British economy as a whole, but it appears that they can no longer escape the wider economic developments.

However, nearly 40 per cent of companies still expect to hire new employees over the coming year - even if this is a somewhat lower figure than in spring 2022 , it suggests that demand for labour is still going strong.

Rising energy input costs and skills shortages have become the largest challenges faced by the business community.

Additionally, logistical problems, a lack of demand as well as trade barriers continue to be high up on the agenda.

As a result of the current crises, only a few companies have relocated or planned to move some of their business activities to other locations. This suggests that despite the current political and economic uncertainty, companies still value the operating environment in the UK.

Dr Ulrich Hoppe (pictured), director general of the German-British Chamber of Industry & Commerce, commented: “The survey results suggest that the German-British business community is not immune to global trends, but so far it has successfully managed to navigate the current challenges. ”

59 online interviews were conducted with members of the German-British business community with UK operations.

The study was part of the World Business Outlook and conducted in conjunction with the Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry. Fieldwork was conducted between 13 and 21 October 2022. The full results can be found at: https://grossbritannien.ahk.de/en/german-british-business-outlook