Manufacturers defy economic gloom

– 70% say even better to come

Figures released today by the Office for National Statistics show that UK factory output has risen at its strongest annual rate in more than a year.

The figures show that manufacturing output rose 0.4%, better than the original 0.1% expectation.

Today’s news confirms the findings of a survey carried out by the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) for London and the South East, which recently showed that more than 70% of the region’s manufacturers feel confident about the future.

Comments Colin Allaway, Principal Specialist at London MAS: “UK manufacturers realise that they cannot compete with low cost regions on low value goods – but where they are winning is through being innovative, driving up quality and by adopting the best available tools and techniques to enhance productivity.

“Despite concerns around a number of issues – including the global credit crunch and rising energy and commodity prices – our survey shows that the manufacturing community remains positive about its future and should be congratulated for such a strong performance at a time of genuine market volatility.�

Where manufacturers continue to express concern is over the issue of future skills shortages - more than 35% of MAS survey respondents believe that the skills gap could have a negative impact on future productivity.

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