PD Ports warns against “Brexit blinkers”

At Teesport and on the River Tees, over GB£1bn has been invested direct by PD Ports and through third party investors to projects in the last decade, including the opening of a new £6m ship-to-shore crane in July.

The call comes during London International Shipping Week (LISW), where business development director, Geoff Lippitt, said: “There’s a risk that concerns about trade following Brexit could lead to some businesses developing ‘Brexit blinkers’ and not actively exploring some of the exciting emerging markets which could be available to them to enable us to truly become a global export centre.”

Trade surplus

The North East is the only UK region to consistently achieve a trade surplus and Mr Lippitt said: “The North East especially provides the perfect platform to launch these ventures, with infrastructure and skilled people perfectly placed to drive national export activity.”

Sustained investment has contributed to ensuring the area has the necessary infrastructure and capacity to meet growing customer demand and keep Britain’s import and export industries moving.

A campaign to introduce free port status in the North East, enabling raw materials and components to be imported, processed or manufactured and then exported as finished product exempt from taxes, was recently supported by several local MPs.

Analysts believe that while Brexit will bring challenges to the UK export market, there are equal opportunities to increase the focus on key emerging markets such as Asia in the medium and long-term.