UK Ltd lags in research

Corporate research and development spending in the United Kingdom is continuing to fall further behind international competitors, according to a report published yesterday.

The report's 1997 R and D scoreboard of 300 of the world's top firms shows that with notable exceptions like Glaxo Wellcome, GEC and Rolls-Royce, many British companies are investing at a level well below the international average.

A key measure used by the study is "R and D intensity", the percentage of sales spent on research. Total UK R and D intensity is still lower than that of other G7 countries. The UK (and Italy) spend only 2.3 per cent of sales on research compared with Japan at 4.9 per cent, France at 4 per cent, Germany at 4.6 per cent and the United States at 4.3 per cent.

Giving a City perspective to the findings, Michael Hughes, BZW Group economic adviser said: "The results may partly explain why the valuation of UK equities is lower than some other G7 countries" The scoreboard was compiled by Company Reporting Ltd for the Department of Trade and Industry.