The UK economy has seen a £9.9 billion trade and investment boost from last year’s London Olympic and Paralympic Games.
UKTI’s target is to deliver £11 billion of economic benefit from the Games by July 2016, from additional exports, investment into the UK and successful bids for high-value international contracts in a number of sectors. One year in, almost £10 billion have already been generated.
The figure is the result of businesses securing contract wins, additional sales and new foreign investment in the last year, since UKTI’s British Business Embassy at Lancaster House hosted a Global Investment Conference and a series of business events.
An independent report projected that the total benefit to the UK from hosting London 2012 could reach up to £41 billion by 2020.
Prime Minister David Cameron said: “With companies across the country we are harnessing the Olympic momentum and delivering the lasting business legacy of the Games that will help make Britain a winner in the global race.”
The Olympics have generated £2.5 billion of additional inward investment into the UK (creating more than 31,000 new jobs and with 58% of the value invested outside London) and £1.5 billion of Olympic-related high value opportunities won overseas.
These figures include £120 million of contracts already won by UK companies for the Brazil 2014 World Cup and Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, plus more than 60 contracts won by UK companies for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics and 2018 Russia World Cup.
In the coming years, UKTI will continue to work to maximise the boost to jobs, trade and investment, strengthening its sector capability with the creation of the Automotive, Offshore Wind and Financial Services Investment Organisations.
