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UK ranked in top 3 destinations for future manufacturing profit growth, KPMG survey reveals
Global manufacturing executives rank the UK as one of the top destinations for future profit growth, ahead of established manufacturing economies such as Japan and Germany, as well as emerging economies like India and Brazil.
KPMG's 4th annual Global Manufacturing Outlook, which surveyed 335 executives globally, also reveals that companies are increasingly looking to the UK to provide key skills and resources in the supply chain, with the UK being the third most popular destination for increased sourcing.
Asked where they expect to derive the majority of their profit growth from over the next two years, the majority of respondents named the US (40%) and China (27%), followed by the UK (14%) Brazil (12%), Japan (12%) and Germany (11%).
The survey also reveals that the UK is the top three most popular sourcing destinations. Some 16% of respondents said they expect to source more in the UK, higher than Germany, India and Brazil. China and the US still lead, with global manufacturers seeking to increase sourcing in those countries by 34% and 37% respectively.
Of those who expect to increasingly source from the UK, 92% said this would involve research and development (R&D) and 81% said the investment would include product design and development. The majority of respondents said the goods would involve significant intellectual property (75%).
In addition, when asked what the most important factors determining the geographic location of R&D investment were, unsurprisingly global companies cited IP rights protection and financing options as primary concerns. The availability of skilled talent (33%) was more than twice as important as government and tax incentives (15%).
According to the report, the top strategic priority for global manufacturing companies was reducing cost structure, ahead of sales growth. When asked about which priority areas of cost-control they would be pursuing, 40% of global companies and 45% of UK manufacturers cited reducing labour force costs.
The report found that, in spite of cost pressures, investment in R&D is rising. 27% of global companies will spend 4-5% of their revenue on R&D, an increase in ten percentage points in the number of global companies spending this amount over the last two years. Moreover, the number of companies spending little to nothing on R&D over the past two years has more than halved, with only 13% projecting to spend 0-1% of their revenue on R&D in the future. At the higher end of R&D spend where companies are committing more than 6% of their revenue on R&D; more UK manufacturers (19%) have made this higher level of commitment than their global counterparts (15%).
In addition, 51% of global manufacturing companies said partnerships rather than in-house efforts will characterise the future of innovation, reflecting that the supply chain will increasingly be at the forefront of driving innovation.
Stephen Cooper, KPMG UK Head of Industrial Manufacturing, comments: "There are a number of things that make the United Kingdom attractive to foreign investors. We have a relatively low corporate tax rate and our legal system provides good IP protection for businesses trading in the UK. The latter may not be said with the same degree of confidence for a number of other emerging economies. In addition, over the past few years, the weak pound has made UK goods relatively cheaper in the global marketplace. These advantages have contributed to the year on year increase in exports since 2009.
"Despite challenging conditions faced by UK manufacturers, it is encouraging that global markets are increasing their focus on the UK for growth in sales, profit and sourcing. The UK has signalled that it is 'Open for Business'".
Other key findings:
* 36% of respondents say they expect the economy to grow by 0.1-1.9% over the next 12-24 months; 22% think it will grow by 2 - 3%; 15% say it will neither grow nor shrink.
* 40% of those surveyed expect the US expect to account for the majority of their sales growth in the next 12 - 24 months; 35% said China (35%),16% said India (16%); 14% said the UK; 12% picked Brazil and 11% said Germany.
* Over the next 12 - 24 months, the top three strategic priorities for 51% of respondents was reducing cost structures; improving risk controls (36%), and sales growth (36%).
* Senior manufacturing executives said that the biggest challenge for their businesses were Intense competition and pressure on prices (43%); keeping the business model competitive (34%); uncertain demand (28%).
* 41% of respondents said their top priority area for cost control over the next 12 - 24 months was existing unprofitable or non-core product / business lines (41%); 40% said reducing labour force / costs was a priority, while 38% said sharing functions and/or facilities with other organisations.
* Financing options (43%) and IP rights protection (40%) were the most important factors when determining the geographic locations in which to set up an R&D function.
Asked where they expect to derive the majority of their profit growth from over the next two years, the majority of respondents named the US (40%) and China (27%), followed by the UK (14%) Brazil (12%), Japan (12%) and Germany (11%).
The survey also reveals that the UK is the top three most popular sourcing destinations. Some 16% of respondents said they expect to source more in the UK, higher than Germany, India and Brazil. China and the US still lead, with global manufacturers seeking to increase sourcing in those countries by 34% and 37% respectively.
Of those who expect to increasingly source from the UK, 92% said this would involve research and development (R&D) and 81% said the investment would include product design and development. The majority of respondents said the goods would involve significant intellectual property (75%).
In addition, when asked what the most important factors determining the geographic location of R&D investment were, unsurprisingly global companies cited IP rights protection and financing options as primary concerns. The availability of skilled talent (33%) was more than twice as important as government and tax incentives (15%).
According to the report, the top strategic priority for global manufacturing companies was reducing cost structure, ahead of sales growth. When asked about which priority areas of cost-control they would be pursuing, 40% of global companies and 45% of UK manufacturers cited reducing labour force costs.
The report found that, in spite of cost pressures, investment in R&D is rising. 27% of global companies will spend 4-5% of their revenue on R&D, an increase in ten percentage points in the number of global companies spending this amount over the last two years. Moreover, the number of companies spending little to nothing on R&D over the past two years has more than halved, with only 13% projecting to spend 0-1% of their revenue on R&D in the future. At the higher end of R&D spend where companies are committing more than 6% of their revenue on R&D; more UK manufacturers (19%) have made this higher level of commitment than their global counterparts (15%).
In addition, 51% of global manufacturing companies said partnerships rather than in-house efforts will characterise the future of innovation, reflecting that the supply chain will increasingly be at the forefront of driving innovation.
Stephen Cooper, KPMG UK Head of Industrial Manufacturing, comments: "There are a number of things that make the United Kingdom attractive to foreign investors. We have a relatively low corporate tax rate and our legal system provides good IP protection for businesses trading in the UK. The latter may not be said with the same degree of confidence for a number of other emerging economies. In addition, over the past few years, the weak pound has made UK goods relatively cheaper in the global marketplace. These advantages have contributed to the year on year increase in exports since 2009.
"Despite challenging conditions faced by UK manufacturers, it is encouraging that global markets are increasing their focus on the UK for growth in sales, profit and sourcing. The UK has signalled that it is 'Open for Business'".
Other key findings:
* 36% of respondents say they expect the economy to grow by 0.1-1.9% over the next 12-24 months; 22% think it will grow by 2 - 3%; 15% say it will neither grow nor shrink.
* 40% of those surveyed expect the US expect to account for the majority of their sales growth in the next 12 - 24 months; 35% said China (35%),16% said India (16%); 14% said the UK; 12% picked Brazil and 11% said Germany.
* Over the next 12 - 24 months, the top three strategic priorities for 51% of respondents was reducing cost structures; improving risk controls (36%), and sales growth (36%).
* Senior manufacturing executives said that the biggest challenge for their businesses were Intense competition and pressure on prices (43%); keeping the business model competitive (34%); uncertain demand (28%).
* 41% of respondents said their top priority area for cost control over the next 12 - 24 months was existing unprofitable or non-core product / business lines (41%); 40% said reducing labour force / costs was a priority, while 38% said sharing functions and/or facilities with other organisations.
* Financing options (43%) and IP rights protection (40%) were the most important factors when determining the geographic locations in which to set up an R&D function.
