{"id":2117795,"date":"2026-10-07T09:51:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T08:51:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/westmidlands\/?p=2117795"},"modified":"2026-10-07T09:51:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T08:51:09","slug":"31.6bn-exports-show-west-midlands-is-powering-uk-economy-says-hsbc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/westmidlands\/news\/2117795-31.6bn-exports-show-west-midlands-is-powering-uk-economy-says-hsbc","title":{"rendered":"\u00a331.6bn exports show West Midlands is powering UK economy, says HSBC"},"content":{"rendered":"<p dir=\"ltr\">The West Midlands exported \u00a331.6bn of goods and attracted 98 foreign investment projects over the past year, HSBC UK&#8217;s head of commercial banking will tell the region&#8217;s inaugural growth summit on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/uk.linkedin.com\/in\/stuart-tait\">Stuart Tait<\/a> will tell business leaders in Coventry that the region has every reason to be optimistic, despite a decade of challenges for businesses seeking growth.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">He will point to three reasons: the resilience of the region&#8217;s companies, its international reach, and its investment momentum.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The \u00a331.6bn of goods exported in the four quarters to March 2026 is equivalent to 8.8% of all UK goods exports. Tait will say this is more than any other region outside London and the South East.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The 98 foreign direct investment projects secured in the 2025\/26 financial year are expected to bring an estimated 4,634 new jobs.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Tait is expected to say: &#8220;I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s controversial to say that the past decade has been challenging for businesses seeking growth, from geopolitical volatility, pandemics and inflation, to supply chain shocks and rising energy costs.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">&#8220;Yet, despite all this, I strongly believe that the West Midlands has every cause to be optimistic.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">On the region&#8217;s businesses, he will add: &#8220;I know from talking to our customers that the region&#8217;s companies haven&#8217;t simply endured these shocks. They&#8217;ve become more resilient, nimbler, and better equipped to deal with the unexpected.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">He will also say the investment figures are a strong signal of international investors&#8217; confidence in the region, adding: &#8220;It is clear that the region is not simply participating in the UK economy. It is helping to power it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">HSBC is one of the businesses backing the summit, where West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/westmidlands\/news\/2117534-west-midlands-growth-summit-to-set-out-next-phase-of-regional-investment-plan\">expected to unveil the next phase of his Growth Plan<\/a>, with reindustrialisation a central theme. The event is being organised by the West Midlands Combined Authority with the West Midlands Growth Company.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The West Midlands exported \u00a331.6bn of goods and attracted 98 foreign investment projects over the past year, HSBC UK&#8217;s head of commercial banking will tell the region&#8217;s inaugural growth summit on Thursday<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":284306,"featured_media":2117796,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[120782,120784,120785],"coauthors":[137138],"class_list":["post-2117795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-events","category-international","tag-coventry-and-warwickshire","tag-featured-story","tag-greater-birmingham","tag-west-midlands"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - 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