The possible takeover of Invensys is a reminder that, for all the gloom surrounding British industry, many companies still sell high-value products overseas.
The number of large manufacturing exporters, however, is dwindling. Whether or not the maker of industrial control and automation gear concludes a deal with France’s Schneider Electric , it now seems likely to join a long list of prominent British companies that have been sold to foreign buyers.
Invensys shareholders will doubtless be celebrating. Workers may overcome their natural misgivings if new markets are found for the products they make. Other Britons may be less enthusiastic, seeing foreign ownership as a symptom – or perhaps a cause – of economic decline.