US to invest £150B in UK, promising thousands of jobs

A record-breaking £150 billion package of US investment into the UK has been announced during US President Donald Trump's state visit.

The UK government is calling it the largest commercial deal of its kind and expects it to create more than 7,600 "high-quality jobs" across the country.

A large majority of the money will come from Blackstone, the world's largest alternative asset manager, which unveiled plans for a £90 billion investment in the UK over the next decade.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the investments "are a testament to Britain's economic strength and a bold signal that our country is open, ambitious, and ready to lead".

"Jobs, growth and opportunity is what I promised for working people, and it's exactly what this state visit is delivering," he added.

On Thursday, major UK and US investors will meet the Prime Minister and Trump at Chequers to discuss how both countries can go further to deepen their economic ties and future collaborations.

Blackstone previously announced in June that it would invest £370 billion in Europe over the next decade.

Earlier this week, Microsoft pledged to spend £22bn in the UK over the next four years, while Google pledged £5bn over the next two years to expand an existing data centre in Hertfordshire.

These investments will also help act as a powerful counterweight to the exodus of investment seen in the pharmaceutical sector.

However, the investments announced by Google and Microsoft are less than 4% of their annual spend, and the 7,600 jobs hoped to be created is a small number compared to the 160,000 payroll jobs lost since last year.

Blackstone's large investment is in addition to the £10bn it previously announced for data centre development in the UK.

Real estate investment trust Prologis is also set to invest £3.9 billion into the UK's life sciences and advanced manufacturing.

Palantir will invest up to £1.5 billion in UK defence innovation and plans to create up to 350 new jobs.

American tech company Amentum plans to create more than 3,000 jobs and expand its UK workforce by more than 50%.

Boeing has said it will convert two 737 aircraft in Birmingham for the US Air Force, which would be the first USAF aircraft built in the UK for more than 50 years, and could create 150 high-skilled jobs.

US Engineering firm STAX has also committed up to £38 million to expand its UK operations.

The 7,600 total jobs promised are intended to be in all areas of the UK.

This is set to include 1,000 new jobs in Belfast and 6,000 more roles from Glasgow to Warrington, the Midlands and the north-east of England.

Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle said the deal reflects growing confidence in the UK's industrial strategy.

"These record-breaking investments will create thousands of high-quality jobs across the UK," he said.

The government said it wants to give "real opportunities for working people", including apprenticeships in clean energy and careers in biotech and AI.

This comes ahead of the signing of the Tech Prosperity Deal on Thursday, which is a major new agreement to accelerate the building of new nuclear power in both the US and the UK.