The news today that HSBC is moving its UK headquarters to the City is a much needed boost.

The decision to take a lease on the Arena Central development with the potential of bringing 1000 jobs to the city is important for despite much of the hype about the sector in the city is has been flat lining for about a decade as this graphic from a recent report by Knight Frank shows.

GVA for the Financial and Insurance sector has been constant at about £2bn since 2000. This is perhaps surprising give the well publicise growth in Deutsche Bank’s presence but perhaps masks other changes within the sector. It is to be hoped that the 1000 jobs are but a start with further moves to follow on as has happened with Deutsche Bank .  Given the competitive and regulatory pressures that the finance sector is under these days in the UK these numbers and the finance sector’s GVA  may be hard too grow without further moves.

The full Knight Frank  report  Birmingham 2015 can be found here

This is good news for jobs for whilst many jobs will move from London – over time as vacancies occur there will be the opportunity for people from Greater Birmingham to access these vacancies.

This is also good news for the infrastructure work planned in the City as the building HSBC  will be leasing, 2 Arena Central, lies within the Enterprise Zone and so the extra Business rates generated by this move will flow into the Local Enterprise Partnership/City Council and help finance such works as the extension to the Metro line.

Good news all round for the the City.