<P> Wales is an important producer of automotive components: Ford has a major engine plant at Bridgend, and BorgWarner has a major components plant in Kenfig, South Wales . </P> <P> Timet has a plant in Waunarlwydd, Swansea, which is one of the world's major suppliers of titanium for jet engine blades and medical applications . </P> <P> During the 1980s and 1990s, a major growth sector in manufacturing was the electronics industry with over 130 North American and 35 Japanese companies establishing operations in Wales . However, this is a characteristic of a "branch factory" economy where routine production is located in one region while higher skill activities are located in another . </P> <P> Excluding intra UK trade, the European Union and the United States constitute the largest markets for Wales's exports . As part of the United Kingdom and the European Union, Wales fully participates in the single market and free trade area which exists across all EU member states and regions . Recently, with the high rates of growth in many emerging economies of southeast Asia and the Middle East such as China, UAE and Singapore, there has been a drive towards marketing Welsh products and manufactured goods in these countries, with China and Qatar entering the top ten destinations for Welsh exports in 2013 . </P>

What has helped the economy in wales improve in the 1990s