Economy London

Economy

London is an important centre in the international economy. As Europe's

largest city economy, it generated $365 billion in 2004 (17% of the UK's Gross

Domestic Product) although this only refers to the city proper. The economic

impact of the entire London metropolitan area is

far higher, year-on-year accounting for approximately 30% of the UK's

GDP or $642 billion (estimate) in 2004.

London's biggest industry is

finance, and its financial exports make it a large contributor to the UK's balance of

payments. The City is the largest financial centre in London, home to banks, brokers, insurers and

legal and accounting firms. A second, smaller financial district is developing

at Canary Wharf to the east which includes the

global headquarters of HSBC, Reuters, Barclays and the largest law firm in the

world, Clifford Chance. 35% of global currency transactions occurred in London as of 2005 (an average daily turnover of $613

billion), with more US dollars traded in London

than New York, and more Euros traded there

than every city in Europe combined.

London is host to many company headquarters. More than half of the UK's top 100 listed companies (the FTSE 100) and

over 100 of Europe's 500 largest companies are headquartered in central London. Over 70% of the

FTSE 100 are located within London's

metropolitan area. Media and professional services are important sectors.

BBC

London, the BBC's local television news service on national channel BBC One

Much

of the British media is concentrated in London

(see Media in London).

The BBC is a key employer, and many other broadcasters also have headquarters

around the city. Many national newspapers are edited in London,

having traditionally been associated with Fleet Street in the City, but they

are now primarily based around Canary

Wharf. The

post-production industry in Soho is also

strong, as is publishing.

Tourism

is one of London's largest industries and

employed the equivalent of 350,000 full-time workers in London

in 2003, whilst annual expenditure by tourists is around £15bn. London is the world's most

popular city destination for tourists, attracting 27m overnight-stay visitors

every year.

From

once being the largest port in the world, the Port

of London is now only the

third-largest in the United

Kingdom, handling 50 million tonnes of cargo

each year. The main docks are now at Tilbury, which is outside the boundary of

Greater London.