Asian companies, including Taiwanese firms, continue to view the UK as a springboard for global growth, with foreign investment in Britain rising despite the world economic downturn, the British Trade and Cultural Office (BTCO) said yesterday.
“Companies from Taiwan increasingly see the UK as an ideal hub for their international ambitions,” BTCO Director David Campbell said in a press release.
“The UK continues to be a leading destination for foreign investment because companies going global recognize it has the best environment for business. It is a gateway to international connections, including a huge market in Europe of 455 million consumers,” he added.
The press release said companies around the world invested in 1,744 foreign direct investment projects during the 2008-2009 financial year to March, an 11 percent increase on the previous figure and a fifth successive year of growth.
It said that the record numbers had been achieved in a year when the latest United Nations Conference on Trade and Development figures confirmed the UK to be ahead of most competitors, attracting US$1.348 billion in foreign investment that took up a 8.9 percent share of the stock market, second only to the US.
Campbell noted that Taiwanese investment in the UK had increased across a variety of sectors, including information communication technology (ICT), healthcare, chemicals and transportation.
ICT continued to be a strong sector for Taiwanese investors, including LCD screen manufacturer Hannstar, which set up its European sales and marketing office in Hemel Hempstead, northwest of London, and IC design company Mediatek, which set up a research and development center in Cambridge, Campbell said.
There is also an increasing focus on the healthcare sector, with Caremed Supply setting up its European sales and marketing in the UK to work with the British National Health Service.
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