I am delighted to have the opportunity to contribute to BritishAmerican Business Inc's (BABi’s) US Handbook, American British Business. Wherever I travel in the US, I am struck by the degree to which our two countries are bound by shared commercial ties, as we are in so many other areas.

The signs of our commercial bonds are obvious: from high-end British fashion and lifestyle on display in stores on New York’s Fifth and Madison Avenues, to the contribution being made by UK research and development to the US biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. I could quote many more examples – the success of major UK banks, of Jaguar, Landrover and the Mini – the list is almost endless. Despite the appreciation of sterling against the dollar by some 20% in the second half of the year, UK exports of goods to the US in 2003 showed an increase of 1.5% over 2002 to a fraction under £29bn. All the indications are that services, ranging from advertising and the media, to film-making and post-production work, continue to thrive.

Much of this must reflect the renewed strength and stability of our economies. A considerable proportion of our bilateral business – perhaps up to 50% – takes place between UK and US subsidiaries of the same organisations. This demonstrates the value of the continuing high levels of investment in each other’s economies – and the benefits we both derive from an open trade and investment environment. Indeed, experience has shown, in both the UK and the US, that outward investment can lead to enhanced exports. It therefore comes as no surprise that we continue to be each other’s biggest investors, with the UK the largest overseas investor in almost every state in the Union, creating wealth and jobs; and the US directing nearly 40% of all of its FDI in the EU to the UK. The figures speak for themselves: 56% of all American companies with European headquarters have located them in London; there are more American banks in London than there are in New York; and over a million Americans go to work every day in British-owned offices and factories.

The strong business and financial ties that bind our economies are mirrored by increasingly close links in science and technology. Nowhere is that more evident than in the biosciences sector – from the US and the UK lead on efforts to unravel the human genome, to Pfizer’s research facility in Sandwich, Kent, where Viagra was discovered. Partnerships between universities – Cambridge and MIT; Carnegie-Mellon in Pittsburgh and Warwick University, to name but two – add to the breadth and depth of the transatlantic relationship. Our shared passion for technology development is vital to understanding why the UK is the G7 country with the highest proportion of exports in the knowledge-driven sectors (with the US in second place), and the US has the largest venture capital industry (with the UK at number two).

Against this backdrop, I see it as a vital part of my job, and that of the UK Trade & Investment staff in our 14 offices across the country, to do everything we can to nurture and develop this relationship. We have put together teams of experts in key sectors where we can help UK business succeed in the highly competitive US market – from leisure marine to homeland security. These teams can provide in-depth research and information and good-quality contacts to the UK businesses working with us; and by working closely with BABi and its fellow business organisations, we can often facilitate the provision of advice from companies that have already succeeded in the US market.

The US market holds out huge prospects. But it needs careful preparation. Like us, BABi and all the British-American Business Council chapters are here to help.