The UK's manufacturing sector is in robust health with
output levels reaching a three-year high, according to a new
survey.
The Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing
Managers' Index (PMI) (3-page / 609KB PDF) showed growth in
output, new orders and employment in the manufacturing sector.
Meanwhile stocks of purchases grew at a record rate and
suppliers' delivery times lengthened, while production expanded
at the fastest rate in three months.
The PMI has now signalled growth for nine months in a row, after
dipping below its "no-change mark" in July 2016, after
the UK voted to leave the EU.
It rose to a three-year high of 57.3 in April, up from a
four-month low of 54.2 in March 2017. The survey also found that
output was driven by the strongest inflows of new work since
January 2014, driven by a solid base of domestic work coupled with
an increase in new export business for UK manufacturers.
