International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox has today announced that the UK will be promoting space exports worth up to £1.5bn in USA and India for the first time through a new marketing campaign.
The ‘Space Export’s’ Campaign will see two of the world’s fastest growing markets targeted with trade missions led by newly appointed HM Trade Commissioner Antony Philipson. In India DIT will also increase its operation by recruiting British space sector experts to work in market.
The campaign comes as 50% of the entire globe’s satellites are built in the UK, "highlighting the huge capability in country". The Trade Secretary will use the opportunity of leaving the European Union to make the most of global engagement with a sector that is growing 15 times faster than the rest of the UK economy.
The UK space industry’s growth has been quick, doubling in size since 2010, with exports growing to £5.0bn in 2014/15, or 36.4% of total income. The campaign will seek to increase the number of nations that are using the specialist products British businesses produce ahead of the UK’s departure from the European Union.
International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox MP, said: “Our space industry is thriving as years of strong growth has seen the UK secure its reputation as a leading space nation. To sustain this, we need to be reaching new markets with huge potential like India and the USA. As an international economic department, we’ll achieve this through our new Space Exports Program, which will help meet the ambition of both Government and industry to see space exports reach £40bn by 2030. With over a third of its business coming through overseas sales, the space sector is a great example of the benefits of seizing global opportunities which in turn create jobs back home.”
HM Trade Commissioner to North America, Antony Phillipson, said: “The space sector in the US presents tremendous opportunities for high-quality British goods and services. We are both nations with a rich heritage in space technology. Through the UK Government’s extensive and expert trade and investment network, British business will be well-placed to make a major contributions to jobs, just as US firms will be in the UK. Together we can boost jobs and economic growth in both countries.”