Official data points to ‘a bumpy ride’ for UK manufacturers

During August, there were negative contributions in manufacturing output from 10 out of 13 sectors including the transport equipment and machinery & equipment industries. The Office for National Statistics, which compiles the data, said there was some anecdotal evidence to suggest that some businesses had longer summer closures in August 2012, or that closures were held later than in previous years so that they affected August exclusively instead of being spread across July and August. In particular this affected month-on-month movements in the manufacture of transport equipment industries. Commenting on the data, Lee Hopley, chief economist at the manufacturers' organisation EEF, said: "The latest figures for manufacturing are still pointing to a bumpy ride for output and trade although, as we have consistently seen over the past year, there continues to be clear differences across sectors, with some such as transport, food and chemicals currently seeing positive growth. "However, the trade statistics continue to provide few reasons for optimism in the short term with the large drop in goods exports to parts of the eurozone over the past year underlining the ongoing impact of the crisis. For many exporters, it is not just a question of when demand there will stabilise, but whether other parts of the world will help pick up the slack next year."