Scottish Annual Business Statistics 2023

Key facts:                                                                                                   

• in 2023, approximate Gross Value Added (aGVA) in manufacturing amounted to £14.9 billion, compared to aGVA in the non-financial services sector of £68.9 billion and £9.7 billion in construction              
• between 2022 and 2023, aGVA in Scottish manufacturing decreased by around £0.4 billion (-2.7%)
• Scottish manufacturing accounted for around 6.4% of total UK manufacturing in terms of turnover and 8.1% of aGVA in 2023 
• the two largest contributions to aGVA within manufacturing in 2023 came from the beverages industry [SIC 11] at £3.2 billion (21.6% of total manufacturing aGVA) and food products industry [SIC 10] at £1.5 billion (9.9%) - together these two industry divisions accounted for nearly a third of total manufacturing aGVA   
• in 2023, within manufacturing, foreign-owned companies accounted for 41.9% of aGVA, whilst UK (Scotland registered) firms accounted for 48.7% of aGVA - by comparison, in the services sector, foreign-owned companies accounted for 26.9% of aGVA, whilst UK (Scotland registered) firms accounted for 55.3% of aGVA 
• the local authority areas contributing most to total aGVA within manufacturing in 2023 were Glasgow City (9.2%), Fife (8.6%) and North Lanarkshire (7.2%)

Table A: Outputs & Employment in Scottish Manufacturing sector in 2008-2023

Table B: Geographical split: Top 6 Local Authority areas in 2023 in terms of shares of Manufacturing Gross Value Added

Figure 1: The sectors contributing most to total aGVA within manufacturing in 2023 were Food, Beverages and Tobacco products (31.5%) & Basic and Fabricated metals, Machinery, Motor Vehicles and Other transport equipment (22.7%).

Chart showing shares of Scotland's Manufacturing sector's Units, Employment, Turnover and approximate Gross Value Added in 2023.


Source: Scottish Annual Business Statistics 2023 from the Scottish Government. For Figure 1 data see Table C.

Table C: Scottish Manufacturing by Division (2-digit SIC) groupings in 2023

Key facts:   

• in 2023, approximate Gross Value Added (aGVA) in the Scottish spirits sector was £3.0 billion and turnover was £5.1 billion
• aGVA in the Scottish spirits sector increased by 29.5% between 2022 and 2023 (from £2.3 billion to £3.0 billion)   
• the Scottish spirits sector accounts for a vast proportion of the total UK output of the industry (around 88% for turnover and 91% of aGVA in 2023)  

• in 2023, Scottish spirits accounted for 13% of turnover and 20% of aGVA in Scottish manufacturing as a whole   
• the spirits sector is important to the Scottish Beverages industry, accounting for 80.3% of its total turnover and 92.1% of its total aGVA in 2023            

• in 2023, average aGVA per head (£282,100) for spirits was over three times greater than for the manufacturing sector as a whole (£85,600) - whilst labour costs per head for spirits (£61,200) were around 40% higher compared to the wider manufacturing sector (£44,000)    

• the top five local authority areas in terms of aGVA in 2023 (West Dunbartonshire, Glasgow City, Fife, North Lanarkshire & Moray) together accounted for 30% of the business sites, 60% of employment, 67% of turnover and 72% of aGVA in the spirits sector                                       

Table A: Outputs & Employment in Scottish Spirits sector in 2008-2023

Figure 1: The sub-sectors contributing most to total Turnover within Beverages in 2023 were Spirits (80.3%) and Soft drinks (8.2%).                                               

Chart showing shares of Scotland's Beverages sub-sector's Units, Employment and Turnover in 2023.       

Source: Scottish Annual Business Statistics 2023 from the Scottish Government. For Figure 1 data see Table B.     

Table B: Scottish Beverages by sub-sector in 2023

Key facts:                                                                                       

• in 2023, approximate Gross Value Added (aGVA) in the Scottish aerospace sector was £0.6 billion (5.6% of UK total), whilst turnover was £1.8 billion (6.2% of UK total)                                               
• aerospace is a key contributor to the Scottish Transport related manufacturing sector, accounting for 42.6% of total aGVA in this sector in 2023                  
• the top two local authority areas in 2023 (South Ayrshire & Renfrewshire) accounted for 28% of the business sites in the aerospace sector, 76% of employment, 87% of turnover and 83% of aGVA                    
• in 2023, the aerospace sector accounted for around 4% of turnover and aGVA in Scottish manufacturing as a whole

Table A: Outputs & Employment in Scottish Aerospace sector in 2008-2023

Figure 1: The industries contributing most to total aGVA within Scottish Transport related manufacturing sector in 2023 were Aerospace (42.6%) and Shipbuilding (40.4%). 

Chart showing shares of Scotland's Scottish Transport related manufacturing sector's Units, Employment, Turnover & approximate Gross Value Added in 2023.

Source: Scottish Annual Business Statistics 2023 from the Scottish Government. For Figure 1 data see Table B. 

Table B: Industry breakdowns within Scottish Transport related manufacturing sector in 2023

Key facts:   

• in 2023, approximate Gross Value Added (aGVA) in construction amounted to £9.7 billion, compared to aGVA in the non-financial services sector of £68.9 billion and £14.9 billion in manufacturing                                                           
• between 2022 and 2023, aGVA in Scottish construction increased by £0.3 billion (3.0%), aGVA also increased in UK by £3.6 billion (2.9%)
• Scottish construction accounted for around 7.4% of total UK manufacturing in terms of turnover and 7.7% of aGVA in 2023
• the sub-sectors making the largest contribution to Scottish construction aGVA in 2023 were electrical, plumbing and other construction installation activities (26.9%) & construction of residential and non-residential buildings (26.8%)
• in 2023, within construction, foreign-owned companies accounted for 9.2% of aGVA, whilst UK (Scotland registered) firms accounted for 78.0% of aGVA - by comparison, within manufacturing, foreign-owned companies accounted for 41.9% of aGVA, whilst UK (Scotland registered) firms accounted for 48.7% of aGVA

• the local authority areas contributing most to total aGVA within construction in 2023 were Glasgow City (13.0%), North Lanarkshire (10.6%) and West Lothian (8.5%) 

Table A: Outputs & Employment in Scottish Construction sector in 2008-2023

Table B: Geographical split: Top 6 Local Authority areas in 2023 in terms of shares of Construction Gross Value Added

Figure 1: The sub-sectors contributing most to total aGVA within construction in 2023 were electrical, plumbing and other construction installation activities (26.9%) & construction of residential and non-residential buildings (26.8%).

Chart showing shares of Scotland's Construction sector's Units, Employment, Turnover & Gross Value Added in 2023.

Source: Scottish Annual Business Statistics 2023 from the Scottish Government. For Figure 1 data see Table C.

Table C: Scottish Construction sector by sub-sector in 2023

Key facts:

• in 2023, approximate Gross Value Added (aGVA) in the Scottish retail sector was £5.4 billion (6.4% of UK total), whilst turnover was £27.1 billion (6.1% of UK total) 
• between 2022 and 2023, aGVA in Scottish retail sector decreased by around £1.2 billion (-18.5%), aGVA also fell in UK by £7.6 billion (-8.2%) 
• the sub-sectors making the largest contribution to retail aGVA in 2023 were retail sale in non-specialised stores (48.7%) (e.g. supermarkets) and retail sale of other goods in specialised stores (25.1%) (e.g. clothing shops, chemists) 
• the local authority areas contributing most to total aGVA within retail in 2023 were Glasgow City (12.5%) and City of Edinburgh (10.0%) – together these two local authority areas accounted for around a quarter of the business sites, employment, turnover and aGVA in the Scottish retail sector
• retail is an important contributor to the non-financial services sector - within services, the three largest contributions to aGVA in 2023 were architectural & engineering activities [71] at £6.0 billion (8.7% of services aGVA), wholesale trade [SIC 46] at £5.7 billion (8.3%) and retail trade [SIC 47] at £5.4 billion (7.8%)      

Table A: Outputs & Employment in Scottish Retail sector in 2008-2023

Table B: Geographical split: Top 6 Local Authority areas in 2023 in terms of shares of Retail Gross Value Added

Figure 1: The sub-sectors contributing most to total aGVA within retail in 2023 were retail sale in non-specialised stores (48.7%) & retail sale of other goods in specialised stores (25.1%).

Chart showing shares of Scotland's Retail sector's Units, Employment, Turnover & Gross Value Added in 2023.

Source: Scottish Annual Business Statistics 2023 from the Scottish Government. For Figure 1 data see Table C.

Table C: Scottish Retail sector by sub-sector in 2023