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Financing the UK’s infrastructure: private and public gains

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Open for business?

The blue economy

Making up for lost time

Transforming cities

After unheralded growth, the world is bumping up against its limits. Widespread affluence and urbanization have enriched many. But the rising tide also strains resources—the food and water that nourish our farms and families; the land on which our homes and cities sits; the road and sky byways for delivery of goods and ideas; the trees and roots that help keep our air and water pure.

The impact of ageing infrastructure

Key findings

  • Ageing infrastructure is a headache for many industries. A substantial majority (87%) of executives report that ageing infrastructure has had an impact on their operations in recent years; one in ten say problems related to ageing infrastructure have caused severe problems in their operations that they are still trying to address successfully.
  • The current infrastructure upgrade spend will rise. Almost 33% of executives say they plan to increase spending on infrastructure in the coming years, while just 8% plan to decrease spending.

Achieving scale in the US

Investing in energy: A view from the construction and real-estate sectors

Key Findings

  • The financial crisis, which has caused downward pressure on real estate valuations across much of the EU, has highlighted the need for renovation of existing building stock. This will be needed to maintain and even increase the value of portfolios; deep retrofi ts will be crucial to achieving lasting value.

Achieving scale in energy-efficient buildings in China

Key Findings

  • Low awareness of the potential cost savings restricts demand for energy-efficient building in China. Chinese buyers are price-sensitive and don’t yet understand the savings associated with energy-efficient buildings. Suffocating pollution in big cities, however, is starting to raise awareness about the need to reduce emissions and may increase consumer demand for energy efficiency.

In the pits?

HSBC Spotlight on US Trade

Globally focused companies had:

  • Better profit margins: In the Northeast, globally oriented companies enjoyed profit margins nearly ten percentage points greater than those of their US-focused counterparts in the region.
  • Higher healthcare margins: Highly international healthcare companies enjoyed profit margins that, on aver¬age, were 10.7 percentage points greater than those of their domestically oriented peers.

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