Pace of manufacturing job losses slows down

There were 2.6 million employee jobs in Britain's manufacturing industries in the three months to November 2009, down 212,000 on a year earlier but 10,000 better than the 222,000 annual job losses last reported. Commenting on the new figures, Lee Hopley, chief economist at the manufacturers' organisation EEF, said: "Labour conditions appeared to stabilise across the economy towards the end of last year and, following sharp cuts earlier in the year, the pace of manufacturing job losses has also continued to slow. However, we are likely to see continued pay constraint in the coming months and any turnaround in employment is likely to lag some way behind a return to growth in the economy."