UK manufacturing hits recession
UK manufacturing is officially in recession following a 2% drop in output for the second quarter of this year. The figures from the Office for National Statistics showed a second consecutive fall which is the technical criterion for judging whether the country is in recession.
The fall was the worst in two decades and comes after a surprise rise in manufacturing in June. The figures will mean increased pressure on the Bank of England Monetary Committee to cut interest rates, despite the recent surprise quarter-point cut which took rates down to 5%.
The prospects for a cut in interest rates was given a boost when the Bank of England’s deputy governor, Mervyn King, said that worsening conditions in overseas markets would be bound to have further negative effects on UK industry.
