10 UK Export News You Might’ve Missed - Week 22
(Also published on LinkedIn)
In this edition of Export News from Expordite, we’ll cover the top 10 UK export news and headlines from week 22 of 2023 — May 29-June 4, 2023.
General Export News
“HMRC has issued a notice to all UK exporters confirming that the switchover from the current Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system to the new Customs Declaration Service (CDS) will take place from September 2023, with all users required to be making declarations through the new system no later than 30 November 2023.
The notice includes guidance for what export declarants can do now to prepare for CDS, including:
- Applying for an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number beginning with GB
- Subscribing to CDS, so they will be able to submit export declarations through the system
- Reading the latest available CDS guidance on gov.uk including HMRC’s CDS toolkit and an explainer of the key differences between CHIEF and CDS.”
Source: The Institute of Export & International Trade
2. The UK’s new free trade agreements mark a beginning and an end for UK trade policy
“The UK’s new free trade agreements (FTAs) with Australia and New Zealand came into force on 31 May 2023. They are the first fruits of the UK’s independent trade policy; although the UK now has over 70 trade agreements in place with countries around the world, all of the others simply replaced existing EU trade agreements. UK businesses trading with these countries have been left in much the same position as before. That won’t be the case for UK businesses exporting to Australia and New Zealand. Even if the expected value of the deals is only about 0.1% of GDP spread across the economy as a whole, there will still be big wins for some UK businesses — and losses for others (notably farmers).
Between September 2022 and March 2023, DBT estimates that it resolved market access barriers worth over £2 billion to UK businesses. If the government keeps up its current pace, there will be no need to worry about the scarcity of new FTAs on the horizon.”
Source: Institute for Government
3. Ukraine to remain exempt from hot rolled flat & coil steel tariff
“Trade remedy measures on imports of hot rolled flat and coil steel from Ukraine have been suspended since August 2022. The suspension was due to end on 30 May 2023. The UK Trade Remedies Authority proposed that the suspension on tariffs for Ukrainian imports should be extended for a further 12 months. This has now been agreed and the current suspension will extend for another 12 months from 30 May.
This product covers hot-rolled flat products of iron, non-alloy and other alloy steel. It’s commonly used as a raw material for other types of steel and makes up almost 1/3 of all steel production globally.
The TRA is also reviewing anti-dumping measures on imports of these products from Russia, Ukraine, Brazil and Iran. In its initial conclusions, the TRA proposed to extend the measures on imports from China, Russia, Brazil and Iran but to remove them for Ukraine, as it concluded that dumping of products from Ukraine was unlikely to recur, due to reduction in Ukraine’s production capacity and limits on the ability to export caused by the war with Russia. The TRA also took into account Ukraine’s requirement to rebuild steel production facilities and domestic demand for steel to rebuild the country’s infrastructure.”
Source: GOV.uk
4. Government support unlocks £300k for AceOn’s energy transition ambitions
“UK Export Finance (UKEF) has announced £300k of support for Telford-based battery manufacturer AceOn, allowing it to secure new export contracts in the Portuguese renewable energy market.
This deal sees UKEF use its partnership with non-bank lender Newable to support the export ambitions of small and medium-sized enterprises through its General Export Facility scheme. This scheme has unlocked almost £250 million of working capital for UK exporters since it was first launched in March 2021.”
Source: GOV.uk
5. Manufacturing downturn deepens amid weak demand for UK goods
“Lacklustre” overseas demand for products made in the UK and a shift in spending away from goods to services in the country were among the reasons, according to the S&P Global/CIPS UK manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI).
It said the drop in activity in May represented a four-month low, with the sector in negative territory for 10 consecutive months in the survey.
New export orders have also fallen for 16 months in a row, despite supply chain issues beginning to ease for many manufacturers.”
Source: Sky News
Food Export News
6. AHDB to launch blueprint to encourage more UK agri-food businesses to export
“On 22 June we will launch a new export strategy at our annual invite-only Exports Conference in London.
The strategy will include plans to encourage more businesses to develop their export potential with the help of enhanced AHDB services. These will include bespoke training and advice, and industry-leading marketing support. It will support our ambition to help increase market access and export sales, by championing the reputation of UK products overseas and to encourage more businesses to explore export possibilities, with our support.
Speakers will provide insight into growing markets, including Asia, the Americas and the Middle East, and will outline what AHDB is doing to maximise their full potential.”
Source: AHDB
7. Scottish red meat could be a hit with Japanese buyers
“Five Japanese importers visited the UK to join the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) for a five-day mission, to learn more about sustainable beef, lamb and pork production.
Scottish producers are well-placed to capitalise on the Japanese market, where sophisticated consumers value authenticity, provenance and quality.
Last year UK red meat exports globally hit record levels with a value of £1.7 billion, including beef exports to Japan which saw an increase in value of 68 per cent to £16.3 million. AHDB’s analysis Prospects for UK agri-food exports, launched earlier this year, also identified opportunities for UK pork, beef and lamb in Japan as a high-value economy and net importer.”
Source: The Scottish Farmer
8. Big falls in pigmeat exports and imports recorded in Q1
“UK pigmeat exports were 21% down year-on-year during the first quarter of 2023, as the significant drop off in UK pig production resulted in reduced volumes available for export.
The 78,500 tonnes of pig meat (including offal) shipped during the period was the lowest volume exported in the past five years, with February (-13%) and March (-24%) volumes significantly behind the monthly five-year averages.
Fresh and frozen pork have seen the largest declines, down 39% year on year to 34,700t, while offal shipments grew 3% year on year to 35,300t, reducing the export market share of this category to 44%, down from 66% five years ago.”
Source: Pig World
9. Sibling Yorkshire Coast Businesses Celebrate Export Shortlist Success
“The teams at a Yorkshire Wolds brewery and a Yorkshire coast whisky distillery are celebrating after reaching the final of a regional award that champions exporters.
Wold Newton business, Wold Top Brewery and Hunmanby-based Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery have reached the final of the Northern Powerhouse Export Awards in the Small and Micro Exporter categories respectively.”
Source: This is the Coast
10. Brexit hailed as report reveals boom in trade between Britain and Brazil after new deal
“A new report has revealed that trade between the UK and Brazil, one of the fastest growing economies in the world, has increased by around half in the last five years.
The analysis by global financial services firm Ebury shows that trade to the UK has more than doubled in the past half-decade, with imports in the first quarter of 2023 standing at £773 million, 52 percent higher than total imports for the same quarter in 2018 (£510 million).
Similarly, the UK has seen a notable 46 percent uptick in exports to Brazil, with the latest data revealing a £204 million increase from £458 million in the first quarter of 2018 to £662 million in the same period of 2023.”
Source: Express.co.uk
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