Guide to English-Speaking Countries 英语国家概况 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Chapter 4 Economy The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Recent History of British Economy Current British Economy I II CONTENT

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Recent History of British Economy I Economic decline  After World War II, the British economy experienced a period of great difficulty and relative economic decline. Growth and Decline

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Causes  two World Wars—great economic loss  the era of the British Empire was over— decolonization (losses of raw material & market)  military expense (until the process of decolonization completed in the 1960s)

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Policies  “mixed economy”  an economy in which there is some public ownership as well as privately owned business  During the 20th century the government has become involved in the economy through introduction of social welfare policies and laws to regulate industrial relations.

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Policies ( )  In 1945 the Labor party  carried out drastic reforms nationalize key industries (such as coal, steel and transport)  laid the foundation for postwar British social and economic development  Result: Britain’s economic growth fell behind that of western European countries

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Policies ( )  Conservative Party  Margaret Thatcher  Radical economic reform sell back those industries to the private sector beat inflation (primary objective) Promote competitive spirit in economy  Social welfare reduced  Result: Britain’s economic growth still lagged behind

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Policies ( )

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries “In politics if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.” —Margaret Thatcher Policies ( )

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Policies ( )  In 1997 the Labor party Tony Blair  the “Third Way”: differ from the old the Labor party’s nationalization reform and the conservative party’s extreme individualism made the Bank of England independent emphasized on the minimum wage and supplementing low incomes emphasized individual responsibility  Britain’s economic growth surpassed other major European countries

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Current British Economy II  the world's fifth largest economy (after US, Japan, Germany and China)  The UK's people are the world's twelfth richest  Sterling—performed relatively well against major currencies in recent years

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Natural Resources & Infrastructures  Principal resources—oil and gas (in the North Sea, on the coast of Scotland)  Large amount of coal(kept for future use)  Highly developed & efficient main road and rail network and airports East coast of Scotland

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Natural Resources & Infrastructures

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Agriculture  Mild climate—favorable environment for agriculture and stock raising  Important crops—wheat, barely, sugar beet, potatoes.  Dairy farming, fishing Manufacturing—still playing important role

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Energy Production  Coalfields are mostly located in Central Scotland, Central England and South Wales.  3 Big producers: Shell, British Petroleum (BP), British Gas (BG)

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Services industries  Services industries, especially, business and financial services—the strongest performing sector in the UK economy  London—the strongest performing region in the UK London Eye

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Finance  Importance of institutions of City of London cannot be over-emphasized  known as the world’s leading international financial centre  Over 550 international banks and 170 global securities houses have offices in London  BANKING

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries Finance (Cont.)  The Bank of England  the central bank of the UK—a nationalized industry operated on behalf of the government.  controls the currency and acts as banker both to the government and to the commercial banks  aims to maintain the integrity and value of the currency, maintain the stability of the financial system and ensure the effectiveness of the financial services sector.

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries  The London foreign exchange market is the largest in the world, with daily turnover of $504bn in April 2001, accounting for 31% of global turnover, more than New York and Tokyo combined. Finance (Cont.)

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries  London is the world's largest fund management centre, and the leader in the management of overseas clients non- domestic portfolios.  Fund Management Finance (Cont.)

Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press A Guide to English-Speaking English-SpeakingCountries  Securities Dealing  London is the major centre for the international bond market.  London-based book runners accounted for about 60% of international bonds issued, with 70% of trading in the secondary market, including euro- denominated issues, also based in London Finance (Cont.)