Exports from the West Midlands have exceeded London's for the first quarter ever.

Latest figures show the region shipped £7.06 billion worth of goods last quarter, compared to £6.81 billion from the capital.

It represents another major step forward for the region's sales to foreign shores - quarterly exports from the capital were often twice those from this region just a few years ago.

China continued to be a major factor behind the rise and more than a third of the UK's exports to the Far Eastern superpower were from this region.

Paul Noon, regional director at UK Trade & Investment in the West Midlands, said a rise in exports to the biggest market, the European Union, had also boosted the figures.

He accepted that Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) was driving the growth but also believed there was a resurgence in exporting across the board.

"It just shows this region in particular is really kicking on in terms of export growth," he told the Post.

"Half of the growth is down to JLR, which is obviously the stand-out, but there have been successes all over the region.

"Exports to the European Union are now starting to pick up again, which is just below half of our exports."

The total amount of goods shipped out of the West Midlands in the first quarter actually decreased compared to the last quarter of 2013, when it was £7.5 billion, but that reflected a UK-wide fall.

However, selling more than London reflects a continuing upward trend for foreign sales as it is the first time on record according to the HMRC website, which tracks data back to 1996.

It meant that only the East, which exported £7.16 billion worth of goods last quarter, and the South East, which exported £9.8 billion, sold more.

The value of West Midlands-made goods being sold abroad reached £26.9 billion in 2013, representing an 18 per cent rise on the previous year.

The success of the region - on the back of the likes of JLR and JCB - has kept the UK-wide figures in the black, with rival regions going backwards, despite strong government targets to grow exports.

Mr Noon added: "Companies in all sorts of areas, whether is it pottery, like Portmeirion and Steelite, automotive components, food and drink, like East End Foods, are growing their exports. We are seeing it right across the board.

"There has definitely been a change in the West Midlands, with companies seeing exporting as the way forward.

"I was at an event recently with 100 companies from the creative sector looking to grow their exports."

Despite an overall quarterly fall in exports, the amount exported to the European Union from the West Midlands increased, from £2.87 billion to £2.95 billion, reflecting a general rising trend.

In the first quarter of the new financial period, China remains the biggest export market for the West Midlands, accounting for £1.2 billion of the £7.1 billion of total exports.

The US remained a strong market – the £1.15 billion worth of goods exported to North America was more than any UK region outside the South East.

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