While London still ranks as the UK’s most prosperous city, others are “emerging as prosperity hotspots”, the report explained.
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Average earnings in the North have risen at the fastest pace in the United Kingdom – by 9 per cent to £23,643 – while house prices have also increased by 4 per cent, bringing the cost of an average home up to £119,500 in 2016, the research shows.
London remains Britain’s most prosperous region with more millionaires than anywhere else and robust economic growth, according to research by high street bank Barclays.
Every region of the United Kingdom is better off than it was a year ago, according to a new study that found Scotland enjoyed the biggest rise in prosperity last year, beating London and several other booming English cities.
This more upbeat news comes despite economic uncertainty sparked by China’s economic slowdown, stock market turmoil and the Brexit vote.
The Barclays Prosperity Map calculates regional scores based on an array of factors such as gross domestic product (GDP), charitable giving, working hours and average house prices.
Jonathan Dobbin, head of wealth and investment management Northern Ireland at Barclays, said: “It is very encouraging to see that prosperity in Northern Ireland is on an upwards trajectory”.
“This is in stark comparison to London, where average earnings dropped by 1% in the same time period”, the report explained.
Barclays recently published their latest UK Prosperity Map and named Manchester as one of the strongest performers for entrepreneurial activity with an impressive SME turnover of 15%. House prices in Birmingham rose by 7%, a fraction behind Manchester, making it one of the five cities with the largest house price growth in the research.
“The research shows that not only is the United Kingdom still “open for business”, it sends a clear message that all parts of the United Kingdom are sharing in, and contributing to its role as a driver of global prosperity”.
Across the United Kingdom, there are 690,000 people in the United Kingdom who are worth at least seven figures; this is the equivalent of 1 in every 67 adults being a millionaire.
Scotland now commands a 6.2% share of the UK’s millionaires, down from 6.7% in 2015. Rising from 508,000 in 2010 to 715,000 this year, London and the South East account for over half (52 per cent) of the total new millionaires.
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It rose by 13 per cent north of the border, ahead of both London – up 12 per cent – and the South East, up 11 per cent.
