The International Festival for Business 2016 (IFB2016) is expected to deliver about £250m of sales for UK businesses and create more than 2,000 jobs, according to an independent evaluation.
The three-week UK festival hosted in Liverpool ran from June 13 to July 1 and welcomed 103 international delegations made up of 800 companies from across the globe.
An independent evaluation report, commissioned by Liverpool Vision, has revealed that more than 500 UK businesses secured or expect to secure £87m in export sales as a direct result of the festival.
Domestic trade was also strong, with over 850 UK businesses reporting that they had secured or expect to secure £145m of UK sales.
Max Steinberg (pictured), chief executive of Liverpool Vision and chair of IFB2016, said: "This report shows IFB’s strong impact on the UK economy – both in terms of sales delivered and investment secured, but also as a platform for UK businesses to connect with global partners, create valuable connections and develop new international networks."
He added: "Removing barriers to international trade and enabling collaboration is at the heart of the IFB vision and we’re delighted to be celebrating another successful festival in 2018."
The research also showed that 250 UK businesses hoped to attract about £10m of overseas investment as a result of taking part in IFB2016, and 300 UK businesses expect to secure some £12m of investment from within the UK.
More than 14,000 delegates took part in the festival, 1,700 from 98 countries overseas and 12,700 from the UK. Together, they made more than 26,000 day visits to the festival.
Liverpool Vision was behind IFB2016 in partnership with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the GREAT Britain Campaign and with the support of the UK government.
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