Islands positioned to capitalise on growth
GUERNSEY is well placed to support the growth of businesses in new markets, according to HSBC’s head of commercial banking in the Channel Islands.
Warwick Long offered the upbeat assessment after the release of a new HSBC survey of more than 9,100 companies in 35 countries and territories that found 47% were more optimistic now than in 2018, with 79% expecting their sales to rise over the next 12 months.
Four in five (81%) were positive in their outlook for cross-border commerce, up four percentage points on last year – even as 65% thought governments were adopting increasingly protectionist trade policies.
International expansion was seen as the top growth driver by bullish firms (38%) as well as being a defensive reaction to new threats (29%). Entering new markets was the joint top change businesses plan to make to their supply chains over the next three years, up five points year-on-year to 28% of respondents, alongside increasing use of digital technology.
Europe looks set to become a bright spot in inter-regional trade though, with 39% of companies naming a European market in their top three for business expansion in the next three to five years, up six points from a year ago.
‘Businesses are responding to changes in the political landscape, whether it’s new tariffs that disrupt supply chains or trade agreements that smooth a path to new markets. They are investing in digitisation and looking to seize market share as a means to protect and grow their business,’ said Mr Long, head of commercial banking, HSBC Channel Islands and Isle of Man.
‘These findings should resonate clearly with firms in Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man, as jurisdictions that have robust global strategies as international finance centres with strong reputations in key markets in Asia, the Middle East and the US and that are positioned really well as gateways to Europe.
‘In addition, they all have ambitious digital strategies at a jurisdictional level, and we are seeing huge amounts of innovation in terms of how firms in the islands are implementing technology to support global growth.
‘If they can maintain and assert these strengths, then all this combined means that the islands should be positioned strongly to seize the opportunities this report highlights.’
