Foreign direct investment (FDI) across the Midlands Engine increased by 8 per cent in 2017, with 140 FDI projects secured, creating 10,606 jobs.
Simon O’Neill, managing partner at EY in the Midlands, said: “The Midlands Engine vision for growth is attractive on the international stage and it’s positive that we are seeing it translate into record levels of investment across a broad spectrum of sectors and importantly creating jobs.”
Birmingham took the lion’s share (couldn’t resist a big cat pun!) of the projects and has now been ranked in the top 5 UK locations for FDI. Fellow regions also placed well, with Coventry joint 6th (seeing a 60 per cent increase in projects), while Solihull and Nottingham were also in the top 20.
O’Neill also highlighted the importance of the leisure and destination appeal the Midlands Engine regions have had on this latest success: “The economic benefits from hosting high profile events – such as the Commonwealth Games in 2022 and Coventry set to be the UK’s City of Culture in 2021 – should not be underestimated. They will firmly put the spotlight on this region and we hope will be a catalyst for further inward investment.”