April 2018 April 2018 Insight 1 April 2018 April 2018 New CEO appointed at FDR Law ARRINGTON basaed full service law firm, FDR Law has appointed WMark Lockett as CEO following the departure of Oliver Burton last December. Lockett, with over 18 years’ Stockton Heath. experience in the legal sector joins FDR Law from a private On his move to FDR Lockett said: “I consultancy where he worked with am joining FDR Law at an exciting law firms advising on strategic time and am very much looking requirements and helping them forward to developing and growing improve efficiency operationally. the business” He has previously held senior Commenting on his appointment, management roles at Foot Anstey FDR Law Chairman Charles Agar LLP, Mills & Reeve and George said: “We are delighted to welcome Davies Solicitors LLP. Mark to the business, we were He will work closely with the impressed with his considerable partnership to further develop depth of experience and we are and execute the firm’s business looking forward to utilising his and growth strategy and his expertise to develop our business responsibilities will include all further. We are confident he will operations, projects, quality and be a tremendous asset to FDR Law compliance and on-site business and his appointment is testament functions supporting the offices to our commitment to growing the in Warrington, Frodsham and practice” The Commonwealth - A Force for Good! by Tricia Francis, Director, Tomorrow The World Ltd As part of the Commonwealth the Commonwealth (this includes English for communication with enthusiasm for the Commonwealth is Day celebration on 12th March, The Gambia who rejoined in February foreigners, not forgetting the strong somewhat tempered by the fact they Warrington Chamber took part this year) representing 2.4 billion diaspora communities, then perhaps don’t really quite understand why in the “How to Trade with the citizens and 20% of global trade. there is a case to look at currently Britain can be so vague about it…this Commonwealth” event at Chester UK-Commonwealth trade reached a under-utilised trade potential with is a force for good’. Racecourse, organised by the peak of US$ 120 billion in 2012, just Commonwealth countries. Cheshire & Warrington and Liverpool before the global trade slowdown. For some further reading, especially City Region Local Enterprise Some Commonwealth countries have Why not have a closer look at if you like trade stats, see: Partnerships. The event was also a higher reliance on trade with the each Commonwealth country as a an opportunity to launch the UK than others, for example, 56% potential trading partner, and, whilst Brexit and Commonwealth Trade, combined Merseyside and Cheshire of Botswana’s exports are to the UK, we wait for post-Brexit bilateral Commonwealth Trade Policy Briefing, Commonwealth Association and mainly beef and diamonds; almost deals to evolve, let’s get involved November 2016; all of St Lucia’s banana exports are with the diaspora and help build included a visit by Prince Edward, Who Does the UK Trade With, Office Earl of Wessex. destined for the UK and Belize and connections now. The recently Fiji fulfil the majority of our sweet combined Merseyside and Cheshire for National Statistics, 3 January 2018 With companies always looking for tooth demands for sugar. From Commonwealth Association may be -https://visual.ons.gov.uk/uk-trade- new international trade opportunities, a UK perspective, the Office for one such organisation to consider. partners/; over 300 delegates attended to hear National Statistics gives our top five The Commonwealth - http:// presentations from Commonwealth As Prince Edward highlighed at the Commonwealth export markets in Chester event, outside the UK, “the thecommonwealth.org/ Trade Commissioners, Export Support 2016 as Australia (£8.6bn), Canada Organisations and local businesses (£8.3bn) Singapore (£7.2bn), India keen to tell of their sales experience (£5.7bn) and South Africa (£4.3bn). A with Commonwealth markets. These collective “Other Africa” (not North) included Crewe-based ice-cream van actually comes in above Singapore at manufacturers, Whitby Morrison, £7.6bn and a good proportion of this Knowsley-based power generation will be Commonwealth countries, solutions providers, Clarke Energy, such as Nigeria (£2.1bn). A trade and Warrington’s very own, four- surplus for the UK is derived from all time Queen’s Award for Enterprise of these apart from India. winner, ICC Solutions, a global leader in the provision of EMV (Chip So why else do they say we should & PIN) test and certification tools. focus on increasing trade with the Students from Great Sankey High Commonwealth? It isn’t a formal School, Warrington also attended trading bloc and we can’t just to learn more about international expect to sell more because we are trade and the support available to a Commonwealth member. Or can UK businesses. Placing third amongst we? Standard economic models schools across the North of England look at the propensity of countries in a 2017 ‘Exporting Excellence’ pilot to trade with each other based on scheme for a new element within size of economy, distance apart, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award common borders and language etc. Skills Section, their enthusiasm for Looking at this voluntary association connecting with overseas markets is of 53 countries spanning the globe, still very much alive. a large question mark is thus bound to appear in your mind. However, a So let’s just recap on the 2015 study shows that, when bilateral Commonwealth countries and partners are both Commonwealth what they offer in terms of trade members, they tend to trade, on opportunities, as, with the Gold average, 20 per cent more and Coast Commonwealth Games set to generate 10 per cent more foreign start on 4th April, it would be good direct investment flows. This so- to know more than the weightlifting called “Commonwealth Advantage” prowess of Nauru and Tuvalu or recall implies bilateral trading costs the memorable rugby sevens debut between Commonwealth partners performance by Niue (population are, on average, 19 percent lower than 1,190) at the 2002 Manchester those in other country pairings. Add Commonwealth Games. into the equation historic ties, long- established trading relations, similar There are currently 53 members of legal system, predominant use of 2 Insight April 2018 April 2018 From the Chief Executive Colin Daniels March 2017 Monthly Economic Review (Based on February 2017 data releases) Economic growth in Q4 revised Overall the latest GDP estimate output rose by 0.2% in Q4 up up to 0.7% up from the previous confirms that the UK economy from the previous estimate enjoyed a solid end to 2016. of 0.1%. The service sector estimate of 0.6% and is the remains the main driver of UK fastest rate of growth since Q4 The upward revision was driven GDP growth with output from 2015 in annual terms. by manufacturing sector output the sector growing by 0.8% in growing more strongly than Q4 and accounting for 80% of UK GDP was up by 2.0% in Q4. previous expected Construction the growth recorded. UK Trade Deficit The UK Trade deficit narrowed over the 12 months according The value of exports rose by Separately ONS data on by a third last year. to the Office for National 12pc to reach £68bn in 2017 production industries including Statistics. The shift followed manufacturing offered some surpassing the growth in Compared to 2016 the gap upward revisions to export positive signs. Manufacturing between imports and exports levels for the final three months imports which rose by 9pc to recorded its ninth consecutive reduced by £12.4bn to £28.3bn of last year. £55bn. month of growth in January. UK Growth Once again the “experts” have got it wrong with The Office for Budget Growth in the UK’s dominant services industry has increased in the Responsibility having to make a u turn as it increases its forecast for last three months at the fastest pace since November 2015 according growth just months after growth was suddenly downgraded strong to a new CBI survey. numbers mean the economists expect the watchdog to reverse some of that gloom, a move that would shrink the deficit and deliver a Meanwhile confidence among businesses and professional services is £15bn windfall to the Chancellor. growing with a further pickup anticipated in the coming three months. The Alpha Group is coming to Warrington! t’s lonely at the top... 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