Economy of Leeds
Leeds has the third-largest jobs total by local authority area with 480,000 in employment and self-employment at the beginning of 2015.
The largest sub-sectors are engineering, printing and publishing, food and drink, chemicals and medical technology.
[5] Leeds is also ranked as a gamma world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network;[6] Over the next ten years, the economy is forecast to grow by 25% with financial and business services set to generate over half of GVA growth over that period with finance and business services accounting for 38% of total output.
Other key sectors include retail, leisure and the visitor economy, construction, manufacturing and the creative and digital industries.
[3] New tertiary industries such as retail, call centres, offices and media have contributed to a high rate of economic growth since the early 1990s.
Leeds was successful in becoming the first British city to have full broadband and digital coverage during the dot-com bubble, enabling it to become one of the key hubs in the emerging new media sector.
Companies such as Freeserve, Energis, Sportal, TEAMtalk, Contactmusic.com and Ananova emerged from Leeds to dominate the UK internet industry.
Compared with other major UK cities and conurbations, its GVA is exceeded only by London (comprising five NUTS 3 areas - £309.3bn), Greater Manchester South (£34.8bn) and Birmingham (£21.2bn).
Over the last 10 years, GVA growth in Leeds was marginally lower than West Yorkshire, but equal to the region as a whole.
Treves UK have a factory in Leeds as well as one at nearby Knaresborough manufacturing components for car interiors.
[21] There remains however several chemical works within the city, including E Chem in Kirkstall, Clariant in Rawdon and Chemsol in Hunslet.
[22] Financial and professional services are largely based around the traditional business quarter in the city centre, as well as the newer area along the South bank of the River Aire.
[11] The service sector of the economy flourished in the 2000s, with legal, accounting, consultancy, banking, insurance and recruitment firms moving to the city.
The range of shopping facilities, from individual one-off boutiques to large department stores such as Harvey Nichols and Louis Vuitton outlets, has greatly expanded the Leeds retail base.
In October 2016 Leeds' newest shopping centre Victoria Gate was opened, bringing a flagship John Lewis store to the city, along with a variety of luxury brands.
Situated close to the UK's geographical centre, the city benefits from good transport connections with the M1 running from Leeds to London, the M62 connecting Leeds with Manchester and the seaport cities of Hull and Liverpool, and the A1(M) for linking to the north.
[34][35] Over 450 weekly flights connect the city to over 70 major European business and holiday destinations.
Major national and regional attractions include the Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds Art Gallery, the Henry Moore Institute and the West Yorkshire Playhouse.
By 2016, Leeds received 27.29 million leisure tourist visits generating over £1.6bn for the city, according to data from a STEAM survey.
[43] Plans are in place to improve public transport in Leeds, making it a car free city with upgrades to railway, bus services, and cycle lanes.
Sixteen skyscrapers are currently under construction or proposed, all of them taller than West Riding House (262 ft or 80 m) – Leeds' tallest building from 1972 to 2005.
