A special quintuple whammy of #DespiteBrexit good news to brighten up a chilly Monday. Over the weekend US bank Citigroup announced a massive investment in London, its first since the referendum result. They plan to establish an innovation centre with 60 high quality jobs and room for expansion. James Cowles, the bank’s EMEA CEO, told the FT:

“Regardless of Brexit, the UK remains one of the world’s largest pools of diverse talent when it comes to hiring advanced technologists with a strong business background.”

Meanwhile, Bob Dudley of global energy powerhouse BP says Brexit has “not diminished” Britain’s standing on the world stage and is bullish on trade deals. He told The Times:

“There are a lot of countries around the world that would like trade deals with Britain bilaterally down the road, I hear that a lot. I don’t think British influence is diminished. BP works all over the world and I see the importance of Britain in what we do and how they view BP.”

In manufacturing, British engine makers are experiencing an unprecedented boom and production is at an all-time high. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders:

• British engine manufacturing rose 6.9% to all-time high of 2.7 million units in 2017;
• Home demand is up 9.7%, while global demand rose to almost 1.5 million units;

UK engine manufacturing is now worth £8.5 billion, supporting 8,000 British jobs. Brexit an engine for British growth…

Remember when Project Fear said Brexit would threaten Britain’s reputation as an outward-looking, welcoming nation? Remainers suggested international visitors to the UK, students, for instance, would be put-off. In fact, a record number of foreign students now want to study at British universities. According to UCAS figures:

• International student applications are up 11% to 58,450;
• Applications from China rose by 20%;
• Applications from India rose by 36%;
• Applications from Mexico surged by 52%.

And the value of UK food and drink exports has soared to record levels, up 10% to reach £22 billion in 2017 – more than double what they were worth ten years ago. British food and drink producers now sell to 217 countries. Sales of milk and cream increased by 61%, salmon by 23% and pork by 14%. And, as Liz Truss famously predicted, we’ve sold cheese to the French (£85 million), chocolate to the Belgians (£21 million) and tea to the Chinese (£2 million). Five new pieces of good news, #DespiteBrexit…