Scottish transport statistics

For anyone who has tried to navigate government websites to obtain statistics this can be a daunting and often frustrating task. Search tools on such sites are often of limited use and the sheer volume of data can make such work incredibly time-consuming.  This is particularly the case when all you want is a high level summary. Our own website ScottishMarkets is one way of obtaining this data quickly and in some cases, the only source. However, Scotland's Chief Statistician does provide some useful summary tables using data gathered from a range of statistical sources.  An example of this is the recent Bus and Transport Statistics which not provides this data in a useful excel format but helpfully provides summary tables. I now know for instance, that the Scottish government spent £326 million supporting local business services in Scotland.

Scottish baby food market

Despite having a lower than average birthrate compared with the UK as a whole, Scots have a higher than average expenditure on baby food. The Scottish Market Profile report on Baby Food is one of 35 we have published on Scottish industry sectors and provides a useful overview of this sector.  The report highlights the key trends that are driving this sector and gives a forecast to 2012.  Of value to baby food manufacturers, retailers, students and many others.

Manufacturing in Scotland

The state of the manufacturing industry in Scotland is always one to generate a range of opinions. Optimists will point to the success of Scottish firms especially in the technology sectors as signs of a bright future. Others will point at the service sector as the way forward for economic growth. The Scottish trade unions have now weighed in with their own views in a report entitled The Future of Manufacturing in Scotland. Not one to mince words they argue that there has been "..too much complacency over the overall decline of manufacturing as a total share of employment in Scotland." and make a number of key recommendations on how to address these issues. Well timed  for the forthcoming Holyrood elections.

Wild tourism in Scotland

Detailed report on adventure tourism Scotland.  It seems the 35-44 male is the key participant with walking, golf., advernture sports, cycling and watching wildlife as being the key activities in this sector,  The report was compiled for the Tourism Innovation Group. The full report is available free of charge online.

Value of Scottish food and drink sector

The Scottish food and drink sector was valued at £11.2 billion according to recent figures released by the Scottish government. The figure based on turnover was publicized by Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Richard Lochead.

Scotland's reliance on Tourism

Comment in The Scotsman today highlighted the importance of tourism to the Scottish economy. This view is borne out by Deloitte who have published a report on the economic contribution of the visitor economy.

Market data for Scotland

Welcome to the first posting from Scottish Markets. This blog is designed to alert you to data on Scottish markets and industries. We will be talking about our own reports but also commenting on data published by others. Enjoy!