Britain is California’s largest investor

Ask most Californians who the largest foreign investor in the United States is, and they will probably say Japan. In fact it is the UK, by quite a large margin. Many of the biggest British corporations have investments in Southern California, including BP, Shell, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Royal Bank of Scotland, Virgin Group, BAE Systems, Rio Tinto, Tesco, BT, EMI, Intercontinental Hotels and Vodafone.

Californian Investment in Britain

Just as the UK is the largest investor in California, so too is California the largest source of investment flowing into the United Kingdom. London estimates that almost a third of its foreign investment comes from California. The highest profile investor in London is AEG, the Los Angeles-based company that owns the O2, which opened in June 2007 and has quickly become the most successful sports and concert venue in the world. Filmmakers, videogame publishers and companies in the life science, defense and aerospace, clean energy and wireless sectors are among the many California entities investing heavily in the UK. The UK is a great market for US companies, an easy place for Americans to operate, and the best gateway into the world’s largest market in Europe.