- Prior was 47.0
Key Findings:
- Further job losses reported
- New export business suffers further steep decline
Comment:
Rob Dobson, Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence
“The final Manufacturing PMI results provide further worrying news for the health of UK industry. Manufacturers are facing an increasingly challenging environment, with intakes of new business and levels of production hit by weak market sentiment, a dearth of new export work and a high-cost environment exacerbated by tax and labour cost rises. Companies entwined into the autos supply chain are also facing a temporary hit to activity following the cyber-attack on JLR.
“The current tough operating environment is also seeping through to business confidence and leading to an increased focus on cost cutting. Confidence about the next 12 months remains at a relatively subdued level, job losses have been recorded in each of the past 11 months, and a further cut in purchasing activity is symptomatic of a focus on trimming non-essential spending.
"There is some better news, however, as a number of firms noted that lean inventories, combined with hopes that market and globe trade uncertainties could subside, may boost production volumes. There are also signs that, while costs are still high overall, the pace at which they are increasing is slowing. This could provide some wiggle room for interest rate cuts to support growth and also help offset any higher taxes announced in November's Budget.”
