They have a strong influence on the UK economy. UK mixed economy

UK economy , a leading trading power, and one of the financial centers of the world, is the third largest in Europe after Germany and France. Over the past two decades, the government has greatly reduced the amount of public ownership. Agriculture in the country is intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards; this industry satisfies about 60% of food needs and employs less than 2% of the workforce. The UK has large reserves of coal, natural gas, and oil, but the country's gas and oil reserves are declining and the UK became a net energy importer in 2005. Services, especially banking services, insurance services, and business services, are the main drivers of UK GDP growth. Manufacturing, on the other hand, has become less important, yet it still accounts for 10% of the country's economic output. After recovering from a recession in 1992, the UK economy experienced the longest period of recovery in history, during which the country's economic growth exceeded that of all Western European countries. However, in 2008 the global financial crisis hit the economy hard due to the importance of the country's financial sector. Falling house prices, high consumer debt, and a global economic downturn all added to the UK's economic woes, causing the economy to slip into recession in the second half of 2008, forcing the Brown government to take a series of stimulus and stabilization measures. financial markets; these measures included the nationalization of parts of the banking system, temporary tax cuts, suspension of public sector borrowing rules, and increased government spending on capital projects. Due to the growing public deficit and rising debt, the Cameron-led coalition government launched a five-year program aimed at reducing London's budget deficit from 11% of GDP in 2010 to almost 1% in 2015. In November 2011, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced additional measures until 2017, mainly due to the eurozone debt crisis. The Cameron government raised the value added tax from 17.5% to 20% in 2011. The increase was promised to cut the corporate tax rate to 21% by 2014. The Bank of England implemented a $605 billion asset purchase program in December 2013. During the economic crisis, the Bank of England coordinates the interest rate with the European Central Bank, but the UK remains outside the European Economic and Monetary Union. Weak consumer spending and low business investment weighed heavily on the UK economy in 2012, however, GDP rose by 1.4% in 2013, unexpectedly picking up growth in the second half of the year, due to increased consumer spending and a recovery in the housing market. The budget deficit is decreasing, but still remains at about 7%, and the public debt continues to increase.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (this is the full name of the country) is a constitutional monarchy, the nominal head of which has been Queen Elizabeth II since 1952. Great Britain leads and unites the former colonies and dominions of the British Empire - Commonwealth of Nations (Commonwealth of Nations), which today includes 50 countries, including Canada, India, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa.

The territory of the UK - 244 thousand square meters. km. Most of the country's inhabitants - 80% - live in cities, which occupy 11% of the country's territory. The population in mid-2014 was estimated at 63.7 million people, which makes the UK one of the highest population densities in the world - 382 people. per km 2 - with a particular concentration in London and the southeast. In terms of economic scale, the UK is the sixth largest in the world, its GDP in 2013 amounted to just over $2.5 trillion at market rates.

The UK has a partially regulated market economy. Her Majesty's Treasury, headed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, is responsible for the development and execution of the British Government's public financial and economic policy. The Bank of England - the central bank of Great Britain - is responsible for issuing the national currency - pounds sterling. The Banks of Scotland and Northern Ireland also have the right to issue their own notes, but are required to hold sufficient Bank of England notes to cover their entire issue. The pound sterling is the third largest reserve currency in the world (after the US dollar and the euro). Since 1997, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England has been responsible for setting the interest rate at the level necessary to achieve the inflation target set by the Chancellor each year.

Thinking on our own

In the fall of 2014, Scotland, which is part of the UK, held a referendum on independence. Although almost 55% of the Scots in this referendum voted against secession from the UK, how do you think the unitary nature of the political and economic (including budgetary) structure corresponds to the current state of affairs and is it capable of further restraining the separatism of the regions of Great Britain?

The UK's most important minerals are oil and gas from the continental shelf in the North Sea. In addition, Great Britain has reserves of coal and limestone. Thus, the country has its own energy resources, but it is not endowed with other minerals, they have to be imported. The country's land resources - the land area suitable for agriculture - make up 77% of the UK.

Great Britain has a very favorable geographical position, which has made the country a great maritime power since ancient times. The labor resources of the country are also very significant, uniting not only skilled workers, but also prominent thinkers and scientists. Great Britain is the birthplace of the capitalist mode of production. The country still continues to maintain the classical traditions of capitalism, developing its economy on the principles of free enterprise. The economy of the state is based on private entrepreneurship, the share of the private sector in the total output of the country exceeds 80%. The private sector provides over 3/4 of all employment in the country. The policy of the British government provides the most favorable conditions for the development of entrepreneurship.

The main distinguishing feature of the macroeconomic development of the UK is that it is not developing on the basis of the principles of a social market economy, like Germany or France, but uses a neoliberal, Anglo-Saxon, development model. Therefore, the model of the British economy is closest to the United States and very different from continental European countries.

The foundations of the modern neoliberal model of the development of the English economy were laid in 1979, when the policy of Thatcherism, named after the famous "iron lady"

Margaret Thatcher, leader of the British Conservatives and Prime Minister of the country in 1979-1990. "Thatcherism" in the UK, just like "Reaganomics" in the US, assumed neo-conservative reforms in the economy aimed at reducing the active role of the state in the economy. Moreover, "Thatcherism" began to be implemented before "Reaganomics", which is associated with an earlier victory in the elections of the Conservatives in the UK than in the USA. Nevertheless, American professors who promoted the ideas of neoliberalism played a decisive role in choosing the country's new course for M. Thatcher and her team of reformers.

The economic policy of the British government during the period when the Conservatives were in power included the following programs:

• 1. Support the market mechanism and entrepreneurship, the efficiency and flexibility of the economic system:
  • through the policy of privatization (from 1979 to 1994 the privatization program brought about 55.5 billion pounds to the state budget, such giants of the British economy as british telecom , british coal and many others);
  • deregulation (costs and administrative expenses of the state for regulating the economy were significantly reduced);
  • tax reforms (the tax burden on individuals and legal entities was significantly reduced: the base rate of individual income tax became equal to 25%, and corporate income tax began to be levied at rates of 25 and 33%).
• 2. Reducing government spending from 47.5% of GDP in 1982 to about 40% of GDP; while the public sector currently produces about 8% of GDP. To reduce costs, reforms were carried out in the social sphere, which led to the abandonment of the principles of the former system, reminiscent of the social market economy of continental European countries. At the same time, the incentive for labor activity among the population was significantly increased, and dependency moods in society were practically eliminated.
• 3. Monetary policy pursued to combat inflation, which by the time M. Thatcher came to power was more than 13%, according to the classical canons of monetarism. The amount of money in circulation was controlled, and short-term interest rates became the most important instrument of monetary policy. Due to their relatively high level during the entire period of activity of the Conservatives, Great Britain managed to attract a significant amount of foreign capital and retain most of the national capital.

Case Studies

In general, "Thatcherism" was carried out in accordance with the concept of supply-side economics, which involved a departure from the Keynesian idea of ​​the priority of demand in favor of supply support. The supply-side economy included:

• the abolition of direct state control;
• stimulation of competition in the domestic market;
• minimal state regulation, transition to indirect mechanisms of macroeconomic control of the government over the situation in the economy;
• selective support for a number of areas in which market mechanisms are ineffective, despite the fact that these areas are vital for the entire national economy (nuclear energy, some types of transport, etc.);
• privatization, activation of the role of the private sector in the economy.

As a result of the supply-side policy, the state gets rid of the former inefficient and unprofitable enterprises, which become highly profitable in the hands of the private sector, leaving either efficient state-owned enterprises or vital areas of economic activity. The new role of the state is indirect regulation of the economy through monetary and fiscal policy, ensuring economic growth with low inflation and sound public finances.

An airline can serve as an example of the successful functioning of previously unprofitable state-owned companies in the hands of the private sector. british airways. The unprofitable state-owned airline was able to become profitable two years after privatization and enter the top ten largest airlines in the world. The airline currently participates in one of three global aviation alliances - oneworld, taking the lead in it.

The Conservatives and their leader, M. Thatcher, managed to achieve significant success precisely in changing the philosophy of business in the country. Through privatization and the strengthening of the role of the service sector, which created jobs for the labor force released in the industrial sector, the UK received a highly efficient structure of a modern mixed economy. The new corporate culture of the UK assumes the leadership of private business, the absence of barriers to its development from the state. A favorable economic climate and good conditions for investment have been created in the country.

Although the British neo-conservative reforms were not without social conflicts, the most important thing that M. Thatcher managed to do was to destroy the socio-economic foundations of the collectivist traditions of the British, to stimulate the free market and the personal responsibility of entrepreneurs and workers. By the way, the “iron lady” got her symbolic nickname precisely for her uncompromising attitude in the struggle for liberal principles, for her decisive positions on the need to cut social programs.

Despite the initial success of neo-conservative programs to reform the British economy, in the late 1980s. the popularity of the conservatives declined. To a large extent, this was facilitated not only by the active attack of the government on the system of social guarantees of the British, but also by the situation in the economy.

In 1990, M. Thatcher was replaced as prime minister by her follower John Major, who also acted in accordance with the principles of neo-conservatism. From the point of view of the process of European economic integration, the policy of the Conservative government was distinguished by the special role of the UK in the European Economic Community and the EU. M. Thatcher and J. Major sought to oppose the British model of the economy to the traditional social market economy of most countries - members of these associations, in connection with which there were frequent disagreements between the UK and continental European countries on issues of a common European economic policy. The construction of a single "European home" also objectively forced to correct the conservative course of development of Great Britain.

The Conservatives suffered a final defeat in 1997, when the population, tired of the dominance of the Conservatives in power, supported the Labor Party, hoping for a return to social orientation in the government's macroeconomic policy and an increase in incomes due to the redistributive role of the state. However, the subsequent prime ministers of the country did not change the previous economic course set by the reforms of M. Thatcher and J. Major. Such positions of the Labor Party, which is currently in power, are primarily due to the fact that the British model of a mixed economy turned out to be more effective than in most European countries.

The UK keeps pace with scientific and technological progress, the restructuring of the sectoral structure of its economy has brought to the fore the high-tech industries, which create a significant number of high-paying jobs. At the same time, economic growth rates are higher than in Germany or France (1.8% in 2013), and the unemployment rate (slightly above 7%) is approximately the same as in Germany and much lower than in France.

Due to the fact that the UK economy is in a better structural position than the national economy of France and Germany, the UK often adheres to its own position in the EU, to some extent opposing the policies of the two above-mentioned continental countries, which use the European Monetary Union and the euro to strengthen their positions. . The UK continues to take its principled position in the EU, primarily because integration under the hegemony of Germany and France with their social market economy means for the UK a departure from the previous principles of liberalism in the economy. In the case of integration, the UK will have to act in exactly the same way as most EU countries: increase taxes and the level of state regulation of the economy. That is why the UK did not join the European Economic and Monetary Union and did not introduce the euro instead of pounds sterling. The UK is also vying with Germany and France for economic leadership in the EU.

The current macroeconomic situation in the UK has the following main features:

• Moderate unemployment. The UK demonstrates a highly efficient labor market model with a fairly low level of government regulation in this market, which ensures good employment rates. The British labor market is distinguished by a significant number of jobs created in the private sector, low personal income taxes that stimulate employment, and the elimination of barriers to labor mobility. In June 1999, a manifesto was proclaimed supporting a flexible labor market and the abolition of government spending on labor market support, which was supposed to stimulate the creation of jobs in the private sector of the economy, as well as to force the British to more actively offer their services to the labor market. The government also plans to actively create jobs for young people.
• Favorable tax policy. The UK tax climate is one of the most attractive in Western Europe: low individual income and corporate taxes, tax incentives for investors. The current government intends to go even further than its conservative predecessors in terms of tax cuts, especially corporate income tax (phasing down the rate to 20% in April 2015, to 19% in 2017 and 18% in 2020).
• Favorable investment climate. A good investment environment in the country is ensured not only by its attractive tax climate, but also by relatively low interest rates compared to the previous period, as well as the overall stable and prosperous state of the country's economy and a high level of competition in the domestic market. The state has created good conditions for attracting foreign capital into the economy, especially in the high-tech sector. In the country, in particular, such world transnational companies - leaders of scientific and technological progress, as Motorola, Nokia, Epson, Ford, bmw, Samsung and many others (more than 13 thousand foreign companies operate in the UK). Up to a third of all foreign investment in the EU goes to the UK, including about 40% of US investment in the EU economy. Foreign investment is especially noticeable in the production of computers and in the automotive industry.

All of the above guarantees the UK high rates of economic growth, the stability of the national currency (the exchange rate of the pound sterling against the dollar changed much less radically than the rates of other European currencies, including the euro). Great Britain, among other developed countries, is also distinguished by high rates of growth in labor productivity.

Thinking on our own

Which of the British experience of modern economic development would you recommend to use in Russian conditions?

Nevertheless, it is worth recognizing that, despite the success of the private sector of the economy, the country's public infrastructure is less developed than in Germany and France. In particular, the network of intercity public transport is worse, it is more difficult to get a consultation with doctors of the public health system. However, these are practically the only costs of the Anglo-Saxon model of development.

The structure of the UK economy is as follows (data for 2014):

• agriculture, forestry and fisheries - 0.6% of GDP;
• industry and construction - 20.6% of GDP;
• service sector - 78.8% of GDP.

UK agriculture is highly efficient and productive, with the UK having a relatively small share of agricultural production in GDP compared to other developed countries. The UK is about half self-sufficient in food of its own production. The main crops include wheat, barley, oats, potatoes, sugar beets.

Describing the UK industry, one can note the rather significant role of its extractive industries. Along with the reduction of coal production and the closure of a large number of unprofitable mines, the UK is increasing oil and gas production in the North Sea. Moreover, the most advanced drilling technologies and modern drilling platforms are used. Giants such as the Anglo-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell and British Petroleum are among the leaders in their business segment.

In the manufacturing industry of the country, the following sectors enjoy priority:

• transport engineering (12.4% of all industrial production), where the following stand out:
  • - automotive industry (such companies and branches of foreign companies as Land Rover, Ford, Jaguar, Vauxhall, Peugeot Citroen, Honda, Nissan, Toyota, which account for 99% of all automotive production);
  • - shipbuilding ( Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering, Vosper Thomycrof, Cammed Laird, Scott Lithgow, Swon Hunter, Harland and Wolff etc.), including the production of ship equipment and the construction of drilling platforms);
  • - the aerospace industry, the third in the world after the USA and France, producing civil and military aircraft ( British Aerospace, Harrier, Tornado,eurofighter) helicopters ( sea ​​king and lynx) aircraft engines ( Rolls Royce) and equipment for the European concern Airbus Industry;
• food industry (12.5% ​​of production), including the production of the famous Scottish whiskey, gin and milk;
• general engineering: production of agricultural machinery and machine tools, including textile machinery (Great Britain is the seventh largest machine tool manufacturer in the world);
• electronics and electrical engineering:
  • - computers (including such well-known manufacturers as IBM and Compaq Computer)",
  • - software;
  • - supercomputers and processors;
  • - means of telecommunications (communication systems, optical fiber cable, radars, etc.);
  • - medical equipment;
  • - Appliances;
• chemical industry (11% of total production):
• - pharmaceuticals (Great Britain - the world's fourth largest drug manufacturer);
• - agrochemistry;
• - perfumery;
• - new materials (plastics, etc.) and biotechnologies;
• metal production (10.8%);
• pulp and paper industry.

The development of modern UK industry is determined by high technology, British products are highly science-intensive. Great Britain is one of the leading countries in the world scientific and technical progress, and among the countries of Europe, the Great Britain, perhaps, has the greatest scientific and technical potential. This can be confirmed by the fact that Great Britain is the second state after the USA in terms of the number of Nobel Prizes received by its scientists (over 70). The most important discoveries of the British, in particular, are superconductivity, the structure of DNA, computed tomography, ozone holes, and cloning.

The UK Worldwide Championship in Electronics and Telecommunications is universally recognized (one company british telecom carries out about a thousand R&D), chemistry (new materials, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals), aerospace industry (the once famous supersonic passenger aircraft Concorde, radars, VTOL aircraft, air traffic control systems). UK spending on R&D is over 2% of GDP, including over 35% of all R&D financed by the state.

The construction industry in the UK has also done well. The world recognition of the high quality of construction carried out by the British is such facilities built by them as Eurodisneyland near Paris, numerous facilities for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta (USA) and the London Olympics 2012, the airport in Hong Kong.

Among the service sectors, it is worth highlighting tourism and finance. The financial industry generates 25% of UK GDP. About 4 million people are employed here. (12% of the country's labor resources), and the country's capital - London - is also the world's financial capital, the largest financial center on the planet. Among financial services, it is worth highlighting banking (in addition to English banks, 50 largest banks in the world are represented in London), insurance, the market for derivative financial instruments (futures, options, global depositary receipts), the bond market (Eurobonds), the foreign exchange market (transactions with eurocurrencies), financial leasing (trust operations with foreign assets, operations with precious metals). In addition to London, major financial centers include Manchester, Cardiff, Liverpool, Edinburgh. The UK’s refusal from currency integration within the eurozone, however, somewhat reduces the potential for London’s development in the near future (in 2014, New York had already begun to push it from the first position of the world financial centers), which was a negative consequence of the traditional British caution in the integration process.

The second most important branch of the country's service sector is tourism. It employs about 7% of the working population, and the annual income exceeds 8 billion dollars. London is one of the largest tourist centers in the world.

Focusing on the peculiarities of the infrastructure of the UK economy, it can be noted that private companies, such as British Petroleum, Royal Dutch Shell, British Gas, British Oil, Enterprise Oil. Approximately 35% of electricity generation comes from oil, 30% from coal, 25% from gas and 10% from nuclear power. The state controls only nuclear power and part of the coal industry.

Great Britain, like all leading countries, has a developed transport infrastructure. The opening of the tunnel under the English Channel made the connection between insular Britain and continental Europe even more stable. Great Britain's successes in the development of civil aviation are also indicative. british airways Today it is one of the largest airlines in the world (if we also consider its share in the assets of foreign and other British airlines), and London Heathrow Airport is the largest international air harbor.

Foreign trade plays a significant role for the British economy: a third of the country's GDP is related to exports and almost 30% of GDP is imported. The commodity structure of the country's foreign trade is as follows. Exports are dominated by products of industrial and electronic engineering, electronics and computers, cars and vehicles, and energy carriers. Cars are imported, as well as products of industrial and electronic engineering, computers, oil, paper, textiles, and agricultural products. The UK's leading trading partners are the EU countries (especially Germany, France, the Netherlands and Italy), the USA, and the countries of Southeast Asia.

In 2014, the UK ranked 10th in the world among exporters of goods ($507 billion, 2.7% of world exports of goods), while being in 5th place among importers of goods (683 billion dollars, 3.6 % of global merchandise imports). In exports of services in 2014, the UK was 2nd in the world ($329 billion, 6.8% of global services exports), while ranking 6th among global service importers ($189 billion, 4.0% world imports of services).

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland covers an area of ​​244 thousand square meters. km, population - 59 million people. Most of the inhabitants - 4/5 - live in cities.

The peculiarity of the British economy and its position in the world economy reflects the peculiarities of the country's development in the past century. Attention is drawn to the discrepancy between the seriously undermined positions of the country in industrial production, international trade and the monetary sphere, on the one hand, and the weakening, but still very strong positions in the export of capital, as well as the continuing role of London as one of the leading financial and commodity exchange centers.

In the global economy, the UK ranks fifth. It accounts for 4.2% of total GDP and 1% of the world's population, and per capita accounts for almost $22,000 of GDP. In terms of industrial production, the UK is in fifth place among developed economies, in terms of foreign investment it is in second place in the world. It still remains one of the largest powers, has a serious influence on the development of international economic and political relations.

Features of economic development. The main distinguishing feature of the country's macroeconomic development is that it does not develop on the basis of the principles of the social market economy like Germany or France, but uses the neoliberal, Anglo-Saxon model of development. It is characterized by the predominance of free private enterprise. The share of the private sector in the country's total output exceeds 80%. The private sector provides over 75% of all employment in the country. The policy of the British government provides the most favorable conditions for the development of entrepreneurship.

Sectoral structure of the economy. The structure of the UK economy is as follows: agriculture, forestry and fishing - 1.8% of GDP and 2.1% of the total labor force; industry and construction - 31.4% of GDP and 26.4% of employees; the service sector - 66.8% of GDP and 71.5% of the employed (see Table 8). In the latter indicator, the UK surpasses most European countries and is approaching the US. The sectors of financial, insurance, telecommunications and business services demonstrate the greatest dynamism.

The role of the manufacturing industry has decreased. Major shifts are taking place in the manufacturing industry itself. The role of new science-intensive industries is growing: chemical (primarily low-tonnage chemistry), electrical engineering, electronics, aerospace, instrumentation, and production of equipment for offshore oil production. In terms of the development of biotechnology, Britain is second only to the United States.

Table 8
Key economic indicators, growth rates
(% to the previous year)

The British economy is highly internationalized. Over 15% of its GDP is sold abroad, and the import quota exceeds 20%. The country's economy is characterized by intra-industry specialization with a wide development of detailed and complex technological specialization. Although there are no sharp regional contrasts in the level of development in the country, 10 economic regions are distinguished in it according to the degree of development of productive forces and industrial specialization, the features of the formation of the economy, the predominance of the existing territorial and production relations: South-Eastern (metropolitan), West Midland, East Midland, Lancashire, Yorkshire, North East, North West, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland.

Industry. Characteristic of the post-war development of the British economy was the increase in the share of mechanical engineering in the sectoral structure of industry, the rapid development of its new and latest industries. The production of electrical equipment, computers is growing, instrumentation, aviation and aerospace industries are actively developing (it is the third largest in the world after the USA and France; it produces civil and military aircraft - British Aerospace, Harrier, Tornado, Eurofighter, C-King and Lynx helicopters) , Rolls-Royce aircraft engines and equipment for the European concern Airbus Industry). The share of knowledge-intensive industries is growing. The automotive industry is represented by national and foreign companies (Rover, Ford, including Jaguar, Vauxhall, Peugeout-Talbot, Honda, Nissan, Toyota). At the same time, there is a decrease in the share of old industries - shipbuilding and machine tool building, production of railway equipment, etc.

The chemical industry provides 11% of the total production. The most rapidly growing production of plastics, petrochemistry, synthetic materials. In terms of drug production, the UK ranks fourth in the world (Glaxo Wellcome, Smithkline Beecham, Zeneca).

There have been changes in the energy sector. Its development was strongly influenced by the discovery of its own oil and gas fields in the North Sea. The UK has one of the highest rates for industrialized countries in terms of energy production (12%). However, oil production in the North Sea is more expensive than in most other countries, and nuclear power has a rather modest place in the UK, producing only 20% of all electricity. In the energy sector, private companies such as British Petroleum, Royal Dutch/Shell, British Gas, British Oil, Enterprise Oil are gaining more and more influence.

The development of the oil, gas industry and nuclear energy led to a drop in the growth rate of the coal industry, despite its nationalization and reconstruction.

The development of modern UK industry is determined by high technology. Great Britain is one of the leading countries in the world scientific and technical progress, and in Europe the Great Britain has the greatest scientific and technical potential. Great Britain is the second country in the world after the USA in terms of the number of Nobel Prizes received by its scientists (over 70).

Recently Agriculture Great Britain has reduced its position in the production of GDP, but nevertheless it satisfies most of the country's food needs, is characterized by high productivity and intensity. At the same time, only Germany has a smaller share of agricultural production in GDP among developed countries. Great Britain is a classical land of agricultural capitalism. Its agrarian relations are characterized by the presence of three classes: hired agricultural workers, capitalists (farmers) and landowners (landlords). A significant part of the land is owned by landlords, who themselves do not engage in agricultural production, but lease the land.

One of the features of the development of agriculture in Great Britain is the growth in the concentration of agricultural capital, the increased penetration of monopolies into this industry, the merging of agricultural and industrial capital through vertical integration, which is accompanied by the emergence of large companies producing certain types of agricultural products. This is especially noticeable in the poultry industry. Grain farming is highly efficient: the average wheat yield is 60-74 q/ha.

The growth of agricultural production averages 3% per year. This is the largest increase among advanced economies. The level of mechanization in this sector of the UK economy is also high. However, extensive mechanization is available mainly to large farmers, who thus achieve a reduction in production costs, primarily by saving on labor.

Structural changes in the UK economy are associated with an increase in the importance of the non-manufacturing sector. Services sector gives 65% of GDP, it employs 71% of the workforce. Here it is worth highlighting tourism and finance, which create 25% of the UK's GDP. The financial sector employs about 4 million people (12% of the country's labor force). The leading role is played by banking, insurance, the market of derivative financial instruments (futures, options, global depositary receipts), the bond market (Eurobonds), the foreign exchange market (operations with Eurocurrencies), financial leasing, trust operations with foreign assets, operations with precious metals. The largest companies here are HSBS Holdings, Lloyds TSB Group, Barklays.

The leading world financial center is London, which has the most developed financial structure with the participation of not so much national as international capital. As the world's largest national financial center, London has been known since the era of the formation of capitalism and the beginning of colonial conquests. But as an actual international market, it developed only from the second decade of the 20th century, establishing itself in this role only at the end of the 1950s. Moreover, if it traditionally acted as a national financial center as a universal center with equally well-developed markets for short-term loans and long-term loans, a powerful exchange, a well-established insurance and freight business, etc., then it is distinguished as a global financial center mainly four markets: gold, currencies, short-term and medium-term credit, insurance. In addition to London, the major financial centers of the country are Manchester, Cardiff, Liverpool, Edinburgh. Britain's refusal from the processes of European monetary integration in the near future may lead to the loss of London's position in favor of Frankfurt.

Among English commercial banks, for many years the leading role was played by the powerful "Big Five" of London banks: Barclays Bank, Lloyds Bank, Midland Bank, National Bank, Westminster Bank. In 1968, there were mergers within the "big five" - ​​the last two banks merged, which led to an even greater concentration of the country's banking power. Now the Big Four account for 92% of all deposits in UK commercial banks.

Tourism employs about 7% of the working population, and the annual income exceeds 8 billion dollars. London is one of the largest tourist centers in the world.

The UK has a developed transport infrastructure. The opening of the Eurotunnel under the English Channel made the connection between insular Britain and continental Europe even more stable.

Foreign economic relations. The place of Great Britain in the international division of labor has changed even in comparison with the middle of the century. Changes in the structure of the economy were accompanied by significant shifts in the structure of foreign economic relations. The predominant form of the country's participation in world trade is the sale on the foreign market and the import of manufactured products. In connection with the increase in the export of North Sea oil, the share of finished products and semi-finished products in commodity exports decreased in the 1970s and early 1980s, but by 1999 it reached 86%. In the same year, machinery and vehicles accounted for 48% of exports. The importance of products from the aerospace, chemical and electronic industries is growing in it, and at the same time, the share of textile goods is decreasing.

The involvement in the international circulation of electronic computers is very high, about 90% of the industry's products are exported abroad. More than 70% of the products of the chemical industry, more than half of the instrument-making products are exported. Among the branches of general engineering with a very high export orientation are tractor building, the production of textile and mining equipment. Great Britain occupies one of the first places in the world in terms of arms exports.

Shifts in the commodity structure of foreign trade were accompanied by changes in its geographical direction. By the end of the century, in 1999, 85% of exports and 82% of imports came from developed countries. In recent decades, there has been a "Europeanization" of the UK's foreign trade relations - a process that has especially intensified after its entry into the EU. In 1999, the share of Western Europe in British exports reached 63%, including the EU - almost 59%. The share of this region in imports was 54%.

Britain's foreign economic relations have a vast "economic periphery" abroad. Unlike other large European countries, the involvement of the UK in international production is much higher than in world trade: the share of British TNCs (in 2000, 146 of the 5,000 largest European firms by market capitalization) in foreign direct investment is about 2.5 times higher country's share in world trade.

Features of the economic development of Great Britain

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland covers an area of ​​244 thousand square meters. km, population - 59 million people. Most of the inhabitants - 4/5 - live in cities. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, Great Britain has been one of the leading industrial countries in the world. However, two world wars and the collapse of the empire dealt a heavy blow to the country's economic positions. After the end of World War II, economic recovery took about 40 years. The growth of competitiveness was facilitated by the entry into the European Community in 1973. In the 1980s, mass privatization of previously nationalized industrial enterprises took place. The peculiarity of the British economy and its position in the world economy reflects the peculiarities of the country's development in the past century. Attention is drawn to the discrepancy between the seriously undermined positions of the country in industrial production, international trade and the monetary sphere, on the one hand, and the weakening, but still very strong positions in the export of capital, as well as the continuing role of London as one of the leading financial and commodity exchange centers. In the global economy, the UK ranks fifth. It accounts for 4.2% of total GDP and 1% of the world's population, and per capita accounts for almost $22,000 of GDP. In terms of industrial production, the UK is in fifth place among developed economies, in terms of foreign investment it is in second place in the world. It still remains one of the largest powers, has a serious influence on the development of international economic and political relations. uk geographic rural industry

Features of economic development. The main distinguishing feature of the country's macroeconomic development is that it does not develop on the basis of the principles of the social market economy like Germany or France, but uses the neoliberal, Anglo-Saxon model of development. It is characterized by the predominance of free private enterprise. The share of the private sector in the country's total output exceeds 80%. The private sector provides over 75% of all employment in the country. The policy of the British government provides the most favorable conditions for the development of entrepreneurship. Sectoral structure of the economy. The structure of the UK economy is as follows: agriculture, forestry and fishing - 1.8% of GDP and 2.1% of the total labor force; industry and construction - 31.4% of GDP and 26.4% of employees; services - 66.8% of GDP and 71.5% of employees. In the latter indicator, the UK surpasses most European countries and is approaching the US. The sectors of financial, insurance, telecommunications and business services demonstrate the greatest dynamism. The role of the manufacturing industry has decreased. Major shifts are taking place in the manufacturing industry itself. The role of new science-intensive industries is growing: chemical (primarily low-tonnage chemistry), electrical engineering, electronics, aerospace, instrumentation, and production of equipment for offshore oil production. In terms of the development of biotechnology, Britain is second only to the United States. Engineering and transport, manufactured goods and chemicals are the UK's main exports. Since the 1970s, oil production has not only reduced the import of petroleum products, but also brought significant profits in trade. British Petroleum is the largest industrial corporation in the UK and ranks second in Europe. Britain carries out 10% of world exports of services - banking, insurance, brokerage, advisory, as well as in the field of computer programming. The UK imports 6 times more manufactured goods than raw materials. The United States is the UK's largest exporter. Seven of the top ten suppliers of goods to the UK are EU countries. The British economy is highly internationalized. Over 15% of its GDP is sold abroad, and the import quota exceeds 20%. The country's economy is characterized by intra-industry specialization with a wide development of detailed and complex technological specialization. Although there are no sharp regional contrasts in the level of development in the country, 10 economic regions are distinguished in it according to the degree of development of productive forces and industrial specialization, the features of the formation of the economy, the predominance of the existing territorial and production relations: South-Eastern (metropolitan), West Midland, East Midland, Lancashire, Yorkshire, North East, North West, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland. Foreign economic relations. The place of Great Britain in the international division of labor has changed even in comparison with the middle of the century. Changes in the structure of the economy were accompanied by significant shifts in the structure of foreign economic relations. The predominant form of the country's participation in world trade is the sale on the foreign market and the import of manufactured products. Due to the increase in the export of North Sea oil, the share of finished products and semi-finished products in commodity exports reached 86%. Machines and vehicles account for 48% of exports. The importance of products from the aerospace, chemical and electronic industries is growing in it, and at the same time, the share of textile goods is decreasing. The involvement in the international circulation of electronic computers is very high, about 90% of the industry's products are exported abroad. More than 70% of the products of the chemical industry, more than half of the instrument-making products are exported. Among the sectors of general engineering with a very high export orientation are tractor building, the production of textile and mining equipment. Great Britain occupies one of the first places in the world in terms of arms exports. Shifts in the commodity structure of foreign trade were accompanied by changes in its geographical direction. By the end of the century - in 1999 - 85% of exports and 82% of imports came from developed countries. In recent decades, there has been a "Europeanization" of Great Britain's foreign trade relations - a process that has especially intensified after its entry into the EU. The share of Western Europe in British exports has reached 63%, including the EU - almost 59%. The share of this region in imports was 54%. Britain's foreign economic relations have a vast "economic periphery" abroad. Unlike other large European countries, the UK's involvement in international production is much higher than in world trade: the share of British TNCs 146 of the 5000 largest European firms in terms of market capitalization in foreign direct investment is about 2.5 times higher than the country's share in world trade. Unemployment rate in the UK in 2013 is 3.9%. Such data are provided in the message of the National Bureau of Statistics of the country. The unemployment rate in the UK, calculated according to the standards of the International Labor Organization (ILO). The indicator reached its lowest value in more than three years. The minimum wage in Britain is calculated at a minimum living wage and is only 6 pounds 19 pence per hour. With these earnings, you have to pay taxes and make contributions to pension funds. Thus, a fifth of the workers of the United Kingdom were below the poverty line. It is especially difficult for the poorly paid workers of "public catering" and retail trade: waiters, bartenders and sellers. Little better for security guards, cleaners and social workers caring for the disabled and seriously ill. Most of all living below the poverty line was found in Northern Ireland and Wales - there are 23 percent of them. In London, 570,000 people fell below the subsistence level.

The main components of the UK government economic policy aimed at building a sustainable economy and social welfare are reflected in the main financial plan of the country. The document defines further socio-economic tasks set by the UK government, presents estimates and forecasts of national economic development and public funding, as well as a government program of measures to achieve the above tasks.

The significant progress of the British economy in recent years, along with flexible government regulation, has led to a general stabilization of national macroeconomic indicators, relatively low inflation and unemployment.

The internal stability brought about by sound government economic policies has helped the British economy cope with most of the negative effects of the last global recession. Over the past three years in the UK, only once, according to the results of the quarter, a decline in output was noted, and GDP growth has not stopped for more than 4 years 2 .

Rapid technological progress and fierce competition in global markets are creating new realities for all sectors of the British economy, and business is constantly faced with the problem of survival. Under these conditions, the British government considers the creation of flexible and dynamic markets for labor, goods and capital capable of quickly and efficiently adapting to a changing environment that affects the profitability and competitiveness of enterprises 3 as an indispensable attribute of the national economic policy of the British government.

1.3 UK industry

The main industrial activity of Great Britain is Extraction and refining of oil; Mechanical engineering;Mining; Gas industry.

Extraction and processing of oil

In the British sector of the North Sea, 133 oil fields are known with proven reserves of 2 billion tons and recoverable reserves of 0.7 billion tons, which is about 1/3 of the shelf reserves. Production is carried out at fifty deposits, of which the largest are Brent, Fortis. In 2013, it amounted to 106 million tons, of which more than half was exported - mainly to the USA, Germany, and the Netherlands. Through a system of pipelines and tankers, oil from the fields of the North Sea and the North Atlantic enters the oil terminal, where it is loaded into tankers for further transportation.

As for the British oil refining industry, it is still dependent on imports of crude oil and petroleum products. The country has 9 refineries with a total capacity of about 90 million tons per year

mechanical engineering

Engineering, the largest branch of British industry, employs 1/4 of all those employed in the manufacturing industry. The industry accounts for 40% of conditionally pure products of the manufacturing industry. If in the past it was characterized by the production of high-quality products, but of an average level of complexity, now technically complex, science-intensive products are gaining more and more weight.

Transport engineering dominates. About 1/3 of the capital spent on the production of means of transport belongs to American companies that have established themselves in the British Isles after the Second World War. There are enterprises in this industry in almost all areas and in most cities in the UK.

One of the world leaders in the production of construction equipment is JCB, which has more than 10 thousand employees and 11 factories in the UK. Every second backhoe loader in the world, every third telehandler is manufactured at JCB factories. In total, more than 300 types of JCB construction and agricultural machines are produced in the UK. The UK is the world's leading exporter of trucks. For example, a series of off-road vehicles of the Land Rover brand is widely known. The main buyers of British cars are the USA, New Zealand, Iran and South Africa.

Several of the largest automobile firms produce almost all serial cars and trucks. Such as British Leyland, factories of the international American company Chrysler U.K. and the American subsidiaries Vauxhall and Ford. Rolls-Royce (controlled by BMW) and Bentley, controlled by Volkswagen, maintain their positions as world leaders in the production of high-end cars. In 2012, 2.3 million cars were produced, including 1.9 million cars. Imports still exceed exports, but the latter is also very significant (about 1 million units). The first major automotive industry in the British Isles was the West Midlands, centered on Birmingham. The second region of the automotive industry was the south-east of England 4 .

Aircraft manufacturing is one of the fastest growing engineering industries in the UK. This industry is dominated by the state's largest firm, British Airways. It specializes in the production of a wide range of various aircraft, helicopters, spacecraft, rockets. Helicopters are manufactured by another large firm, Westland Aircraft. Almost all the production of aircraft engines in the country is concentrated in the hands of the nationalized company Rolls-Royce, which has factories in Derby, Bristol, Coventry, and also in Scotland.

Gas industry

More than 80 gas fields have been discovered in the British North Sea zone with proven reserves of 2 trillion m³ and recoverable reserves of 0.8 trillion m³. Gas production at them began in the mid-1960s, and 37 fields are currently in operation. Production volume for 2000-2013 increased to 153 billion m³. Foreign gas trade is negligible; in 2013, its exports amounted to 15, and imports - 8 billion m³.

Mining

United Kingdom - considered the world's second largest exporter of kaolin 5 ; other types of clay are also mined on a large scale for the ceramic industry. There are prospects for the extraction of tungsten, copper and gold from newly explored deposits.

The development of iron ore is carried out in a relatively narrow belt. It is of low quality here, siliceous and contains only 33% of the metal. The need for iron ore is covered by imports from Canada, Liberia and Mauritania.