London/New York – Today, the United States International Trade Commission (USITC) published its final report on
U.S. SME Exports: Trade-Related Barriers Affecting Exports of U.S. SMEs to the United Kingdom, compared to larger US exporters to the UK.

The report follows a comprehensive investigation conducted with Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in 2018 and 2019, including a series of ‘listening sessions’ on both sides of the Atlantic. BritishAmerican Business was a proud partner to the USITC in helping to facilitate the investigation efforts made in the UK.

Commenting on the final report, BAB’s Director of Policy & Trade, Emanuel Adam said:

“Our team was very happy to support this initiative. Trade-related barriers affect businesses of all sizes, but smaller businesses are often disproportionally affected, as they lack the resources to address them.

“As the US and the UK seek to further develop the trading ties between their economies, it is only right to focus on smaller businesses by identifying and addressing the issues that can, in some cases, decide whether a business can fulfil its exporting ambition.

“This report is a fascinating deep-dive into the issues that smaller companies and their representatives face when exporting to the UK. The list of barriers includes differences in standards and regulations and a broad variety of market access issues, but also areas often overlooked, such as financing, the role of currency fluctuation, or labor mobility.

“Moreover, the report highlights existing initiatives and platforms established to support SMEs and it offers suggestions for how reported barriers may be addressed.

“We congratulate the USITC for having finalized this report and we encourage all relevant stakeholders in the transatlantic corridor to use this report as a resource and inspiration.”

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