Aberdeen City and Shire exporters set sights on new markets

The latest report of the most comprehensive export survey in Scotland has revealed that the vast majority of exporters across Aberdeen City and Shire are positive about the future of their international business.

The results of the 2006 Export Survey for Aberdeen City and Shire show that more than 80% of exporters expect the value of their global activity to grow in the next two years.

The survey — carried out every two years by Aberdeen City Council on behalf of Business Gateway International Aberdeen City and Shire (BGI ACS) — also showed that well over a third of existing exporters intend to develop new markets, with Russia, Angola, the United Arab Emirates, and Libya identified as the top potential markets.

Several other countries have emerged as targets for future export development, among them Australia and West Africa, with Gabon, the Ivory Coast and Cameroon all growth areas, along with Nigeria. In contrast, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Norway are less popular than they were in 2004.

A digital copy of the 29-page 2006 Export Survey report is available for download in pdf format on this website at http://www.exportlink.co.uk/survey.html. The report enables current exporters in all industry sectors in the region to benchmark their own export targets, as well as offering a useful guide to new markets for aspiring exporters.

The information provided by the survey also helps to tailor the export support services offered by BGI to ensure that they meet the changing needs of the local business community.

The top markets identified for development in the 2004 survey were Libya, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan, and since then members of BGI ACS have successfully implemented a number of initiatives, including trade missions, learning journeys, seminars and trade clinics, to help companies break into these markets.

A comprehensive survey

A total of 650 companies from Aberdeen City and Shire, representing a wide range of business sectors, took part in the 2006 survey – 495 exporters and 155 non-exporters.

The main findings are:

There are 20 countries to which 100 or more Aberdeen City and Shire companies currently export

The USA, Norway, Netherlands and France remain the principal export markets

Oman has emerged as a significant market, with 63 companies exporting there compared with 20 in 2004

Also important is Angola, to which 129 companies now export against 79 in 2004

The USA remains the most important market for 92 companies

The main markets for Aberdeenshire-based companies are in Western Europe and North America, while Aberdeen-based exporters have a much wider geographical spread

70% of exporters have been exporting for six or more years

212 exporters said that exports accounted for more than 30% of their turnover

Competitive prices and exchange rates were the main problems experienced by current exporters

Among non-exporters, Norway, the USA, Australia and a number of European countries are the principal target markets for future export activity

The most popular forms of assistance requested from Business Gateway International were “financial assistance” and “overseas missions, learning journeys, exhibitions”.

This is the eighth Export Survey undertaken by Business Gateway International Aberdeen City and Shire, which provides a co-ordinated approach to a wide variety of international business support services. BGI ACS members include Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Councils, Scottish Enterprise Grampian, Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, Scottish Development International, and Scottish Enterprise Energy Team.

Karen Tolmie, Chair of BGI ACS and Global Connections Manager with Scottish Enterprise Grampian, said: “This biennial survey is carried out to gather information about current exporting activities, future exporting intentions and to update previous surveys.

“Internationalisation is playing an increasingly important role in the future development of the Aberdeen City and Shire economy and Business Gateway International aims to provide businesses with first-class support services.”

Multi-sector coverage

The report also shows that:

282 companies responded to both the 2004 and 2006 export survey

62 of these companies are now exporting to markets they had identified in the 2004 survey

Between the 2004 and 2006 survey, 59 companies increased the value of their exports while 30 reported a drop

The percentage of respondents currently exporting has increased from 69% in 2004 to 76% in 2006. There was a slight fall in the number of exporters intending to expand their international business activity, from 57% of all exporters in 2004 to 48% in 2006.

The number of non-exporters intending to begin exporting has also decreased slightly, from 14% of all non-exporters in 2002 to 13% in 2006.

Sectors represented by businesses responding included: agriculture, biotechnology/life sciences, construction, defence/decommissioning, environment, engineering, financial/legal, food, fish and drink, freight/transport, ICT and software, medical/healthcare, oil and gas, professional services, recruitment/manpower, renewable energies, tourism, and training/education.

If your company would like to receive information about international trade development support services from Business Gateway International please contact Karen Irving on (01224) 252208 or email export.help@scotent.co.uk

If you did not participate in this survey, but wish to be registered on the international trade development database and subscribe to BGI’s free Tailored Information Service click here.

Further information on the 2006 Export Survey report is available from Lynn Davie, Economic and Environmental Sustainability, Aberdeen City Council, Tel (01224) 814605, email ldavie@aberdeencity.gov.uk