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WEBINAR: How do you address the challenges of Brexit?

Last month we teamed up with the British Library to deliver a webinar on exporting and importing following Brexit.

We’ve split the two-hour session into specific chunks to help you get to the information you need.

The webinar covered a full range of topics, including:

  • What’s changed with Brexit
  • What the implications are
  • How to address the challenges
  • Rules of Origin
  • Key issues facing exporters post-Brexit
  • How to trade internationally post-Brexit

This session covers in detail the different Brexit-related challenges that importers and exporters will, and have been, experiencing.

Need more support?

We’ve put together a range of free guides and workbooks to help businesses navigate the choppy Brexit waters.

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WEBINAR: What are the implications of Brexit?

Last month we teamed up with the British Library to deliver a webinar on exporting and importing following Brexit.

We’ve split the two-hour session into specific chunks to help you get to the information you need.

The webinar covered a full range of topics, including:

  • What’s changed with Brexit
  • What the implications are
  • How to address the challenges
  • Rules of Origin
  • Key issues facing exporters post-Brexit
  • How to trade internationally post-Brexit

This session covers the technical implications of Brexit, covering everything from the HS code and EORI numbers to customs declarations, Rules of Origin, VAT changes and Incoterms.

Need more support?

We’ve put together a range of free guides and workbooks to help businesses navigate the choppy Brexit waters.

Read More

WEBINAR: What changed with Brexit?

Last month we teamed up with the British Library to deliver a webinar on exporting and importing following Brexit.

We’ve split the two-hour session into specific chunks to help you get to the information you need.

The webinar covered a full range of topics, including:

  • What’s changed with Brexit
  • What the implications are
  • How to address the challenges
  • Rules of Origin
  • Key issues facing exporters post-Brexit
  • How to trade internationally post-Brexit

This session covers introductions and what’s changed since Brexit, including the big differences, what is the WTO, the anatomy of a modern free trade agreement, and details of The UK-EU Trade & Cooperation Agreement.

Need more support?

We’ve put together a range of free guides and workbooks to help businesses navigate the choppy Brexit waters.

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UK launches bid to join Trans-Pacific trading partnership

The government has launched the UK’s bid to join the Trans-Pacific trading bloc, an economic zone worth more than £9tr. 

Talks have opened today with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership nations (you’ll be glad to know there’s a handy acronym, CPTPP), currently comprising of 11 countries. 

The deal could mean tariff-free trade for almost all exports with Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. 

Boris Johnson commented on the commencement of talks that: “Membership of the CPTTP free-trade partnership would open up unparalleled opportunities for British businesses and consumers in the fast-growing Indo-Pacific.

“It’s an exciting opportunity to build on this country’s entrepreneurial spirit and free-trading history to bring economic benefits across the whole of the UK.”

International trade secretary Liz Truss followed on by saying: “This part of the world is where Britain’s greatest opportunities lie.

“We left the EU with the promise of deepening links with old allies and fast-growing consumer markets beyond Europe, and joining the high-standards Trans-Pacific Partnership is an important part of that vision.”

Read more: UK food and drink exports into the EU halved since Brexit

“Membership would help our farmers, makers and innovators sell to some of the biggest economies of the present and future, but without ceding control over our laws, borders or money. It is a glittering post-Brexit prize that I want us to seize.”

Talks get underway just days after the new trade agreement with Australia was signed. 

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Internationalisation Fund: Grants available for exporters seeking expert support

The Department for International Trade has launched a new grant scheme designed to support UK firms to expand internationally. 

Called the Internationalisation Fund, grants of between £1,000 and £9,000 will be made available to eligible firms covering a wide range of international business activities, from export consultancy to digital marketing. 

Businesses will need to cover between 40-50% of the costs themselves with the grant covering the rest and can be applied to activities including:

  • Market research
  • IP advice
  • Translation services
  • International social media/SEO
  • Trade fairs (where no TAP funding is available)
  • Independent market visits
  • Consultancy and other international commercial services

The eligibility criteria are:

  • The company must be based in England
  • The company must be a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) with up to 250 employees
  • No more than 25% of the business is owned by an enterprise that is not an SME
  • Annual turnover does not exceed €50 million or annual balance sheet does not exceed €43 million

Funding to support expert consultancy from Go Exporting

The new grant scheme can be applied to services offered by Go Exporting, including our export consultancy services and international digital marketing campaigns. 

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Confidence ‘picking up’ as UK exports into EU rebound

Trade between the UK and the EU recovered in February after a big drop at the start of the year. 

Following the end of the transition period and the start of ‘Brexit for real’ for companies on both sides of the Channel, exporting activity had slumped 42%. 

But data from the ONS found that exports jumped almost 47% in February, but are still below last year’s activity. 

February’s rebound was predominantly fueled by export increases of machinery, transport equipment and chemicals – particularly cards and pharma products. Interestingly, growth in exports from the UK to the EU was stronger than EU into the UK. 

An ONS spokesperson said of the data that: “Exports to the EU recovered significantly from their January fall, though still remain below 2020 levels. However, imports from the EU are yet to significantly rebound, with a number of issues hampering trade.”

Read more: Food and drink exports crippled by Brexit and lockdowns

The rebound against January’s slump is still difficult to truly analyse to see how export markets are responding to Brexit. Many companies avoided sending goods across the border at the start of the year to avoid expected Brexit disruption, especially across machinery, parts and pharmaceutical products that were stockpiled towards the end of 2020.

The ongoing pandemic also continues to skew and disrupt demand. 

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Navigating the Indian market (Interview)

Last month, Go Exporting CEO Mike Wilson joined Pervinder Singh, the editor and founder of the UK India Trade Portal to discuss navigating the Indian market and opportunities for bilateral trade. 

In the interview, the two discuss why British companies should consider trading within the Indian market and the most effective approaches to market entry. 

Watch in full below, and make sure you subscribe for more insightful content from the UK India Trade Portal here.

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Food and drink exports crippled by Brexit and lockdowns

UK food and drink exports have suffered a huge year-on-year trade reduction according to new data from HMRC. 

Data compiled by the Food and Drink Federation shows showed a £42m fall in cheese exports – from £45m to just £7m – whilst whisky exports fell from £105m to just £40m. Chocolate exports also suffered, dropping almost 70% to £13m. 

Whilst the biggest falls in export value, these were by no means the worst affected products. Salmon and beef dropped 98% and 92% respectively. 

Causes of the drop in export demand include a combination of Brexit and weaker demand from a continent that still largely remains in lockdown with restaurants shut.

Read more: Trade between UK and EU nations falls

An ONS spokesperson added some context to the data, noting that: “A unique combination of factors, including stockpiling last year, Covid lockdowns across Europe and businesses adjusting to our new trading relationship, made it inevitable that exports to the EU would be lower this January than last.”

If your business has been impacted, we can help

Go Exporting has already helped a number of companies both prepare for Brexit, and now workaround new restrictions, regulations and challenges. 

Our Brexit FastTrack service offers a detailed review of businesses post-Brexit to help resolve the issues they’re encountering – with a quick turnaround and at a fixed price. 

Some firms may also be able to reclaim the cost of this service via the SME Brexit Support Fund.  

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Webinar: Exporting goods & services to the EU at Emerging Tech Fest

This month we joined a fantastic line-up of speakers for Emerging Tech Fest 2021.

In this webinar, Go Exporting CEO Mike Wilson spome with Tony Hicks about exporting goods and services to the EU in the wake of Brexit. Key themes included what’s changed since 1st January, the trade agreement itself and its’ implications, how to identify challenges to your business and how to address the challenges whilst maintaining exports.

Watch the webinar in full below.

If you need support with your post-Brexit export strategy, we can help.

First, download this free Brexit Checklist to get you started.

For a professional service to assess your Brexit positioning, learn more about our Brexit consulting here.

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Podcast: Strategies for expansion and exporting with Sue Firth

Last week, Go Exporting CEO Mike Wilson joined Sue Firth for a podcast on strategies for international expansion and exporting. 

The podcast goes into depth on the reasons for exporting, how businesses can begin to explore international markets and the inevitable challenges that Brexit has presented. 

Listen to the podcast below:

Sue Firth is a performance coach and business psychologist, international speaker and Associate Fellow of the British Psychology Society. See more great podcasts on business, marketing and strategies for success from Sue here.

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