Rolls-Royce warns of global supply chain disruption following Brexit

Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC is concerned over border checks that will cause disruption to its global supply chain after the UK leaves the EU, Reuters reported. The company is looking at measures to counter the rise in national protectionism that it represents, a member of its executive leadership said yesterday.

Speaking at the launch of a new partnership with Indian software firm Tata Consultancy Services, the engine maker's head of strategy and marketing Ben Story outlined various concerns over the Brexit process for one of the UK's highest profile industrial exporters.

''We are worried about border checks and whether that will make our supply chain flow less fluidly,'' Story, formerly head of Citibank's UK Investment Banking and Broking unit, told Reuters.

''We are worried about the talent and making sure that we always get the right talent. We also work very closely with European universities and we worry that may break down and some of the research funding may fall away. We worry about regulations.''

Business leaders told prime minister Theresa May on Monday that she needed to expedite negotiations with the EU as concerns mount that the UK will crash out of the world's biggest trading bloc in 2019 without a deal.