Britain’s future trade relationships - distance will still matter

For the British government one attraction of leaving the European Union is to be able to pivot trade flows away from Europe towards the rest of the world. A key motivation is that by shifting exports from slow-growing mature economies to fast-growing emerging countries the UK can “future proof” itself and enjoy faster growth in return. But is this realistic?

The following chart (please see below) nicely illustrates the importance of distance in trade relationships. The vertical …