Manufacturing Output Lifts Production

The quarterly analysis of the index of production published by the ONS shows that production increased by 0.2% between Q2 and Q3 2014. The growth was mainly due to manufacturing which increased by 0.4%.

The annual comparison estimates that total production output increased by 1.5% between September 2013 and September 2014. Manufacturing was the only sector to record a rise with an increase of 2.9%.

On a month by month basis total production in September 2014 was said to have increased by 0.6% when compared with August 2014. Three of the main sectors reported growth with mining and quarrying being the main contributor with growth of 3.8%.

Manufacturing output increased by 0.4% between August and September 2014 and the main sub-sectors responsible were transport equipment, computer, electronic and optical products and chemicals and chemical products.

Increase In Annual Output Of 2.3%

Production increased by 2.3% between May 2013 and May 2014 according to s statistical bulletin from the ONS. Manufacturing was the main contributor to the growth in annual production with growth of 3.7%. The monthly comparison shows that production decreased between April and May 2014 by 0.7% with manufacturing again the main contributor with a decrease of 1.3% over the month.

Manufacturing Helps Index To Grow By 3%

Output increased by 3% over the year between April 2013 and April 2014 according to a statistical bulletin released by the ONS. All the main sectors increased over the year except electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning. Manufacturing increased by 4.4%.

The main components that contributed to the increase in the manufacturing production index were rubber, plastic and other non-metallic mineral products, transport equipment and food, beverages and tobacco.

The monthly comparison shows that production increased by 0.4% between March 2014 and April 2014. Output dipped in two sectors and the largest contributor to this was mining and quarrying with -1.1% then water supply, sewerage and waste management with -0.7%. Manufacturing increased over the month by 0.4% due to increases in transport equipment, computer electronic and optical products and rubber, plastic and other non-metallic mineral products.

Production Output Up By 0.7%

Production increased by 0.7% between Q4 2013 and Q1 2014 according to statistics from the ONS. The largest contribution to the growth in production came from manufacturing which increased by 1.4%.

Over the year between March 2013 and March 2014 output increased by 2.3%. The main contributors to the growth were manufacturing 3.3%, water supply, sewerage and waste management 12.1% and mining and quarrying with 3.1%.

Between February 2014 and March 2014 production output decreased by 0.1% with decreases in two of the main sectors: mining and quarrying with a decrease of 2.8% and water supply, sewerage and waste management with 2.1%.

Manufacturing and the production of electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning increased by 0.5% over the month between February and March 2014 whereas the production of electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning was the only sector to report a decrease over the year from March to March.

Output Increase Of 2.7%

There were increases in production output of 3.8% in manufacturing, 8.5% in water and waste management and 0.2% in mining and quarrying which contributed to the increase of 2.7% in total production output over the year between February 2013 and February 2014. Only electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning reported a decrease of 8.8% due it was thought to this year's warmer February.

The main manufacturing sectors that added to the increase over the year were rubber and plastic products, transport equipment and machinery.

Total production over the month between January and February 2014 increased by 0.9% mainly due to increases in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, transport equipment and food, drink and tobacco.

Output Up By 2.9%

Production output increased by 2.9% over the year to January 2014. Manufacturing, the largest component of production figures, increased by 3.3% and water supply, sewerage and waste management increased 12.6%.

Of the manufacturing components, the main contributors to the 3.3% increase were rubber, plastic products and other non-metallic mineral products manufacturing, the manufacture of machinery and equipment not elsewhere classified and the manufacture of transport equipment.

Production output increased by 0.1% over the month between December 2013 and January 2014. All sectors increased except mining and quarrying which decreased by 3.4%. The remaining sectors all of which reported an increase grew by 0.4%.

The main components contributing to the increase over the month were the manufacture of rubber, plastic products and other non-metallic mineral products, the manufacture of machinery and equipment not elsewhere classified and other manufacturing and repair.

The second estimate of GDP suggested the economy grew by 0.7%. Three of he four main groupings experienced growth with agriculture experiencing a decline of 0.1%. Services and construction grew by 0.8% and 0.2% respectively. Services continues to be the main contributor to growth.

Manufacturing Leads Growth In Production

Manufacturing made by far the biggest contribution to the overall production output increase of 0.5% with growth of 0.7% between Q3 and Q4 2013 according to data from the ONS.

The annual comparison shows that production output was 1.8% higher in December 2013 than in December 2012. When this is broken down into industry sectors manufacturing rose by 1.5%, mining and quarrying by 2.6% and water services by 7.9%. These rises were offset by a fall of 3% in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning.

Between November 2013 and December 2013 production rose by 0.4% and manufacturing by 0.3%. The manufacture of basic pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical preparations, coke and refined petroleum products and the manufacture of food products, beverages and tobacco were mainly responsible for the rise.

The figures are seasonally adjusted.

Steel Helps UK Production Increase 2.5%

Output rose by 2.5% over the year to November 2013 according to the ONS reflecting rises in manufacturing output and output in mining and quarrying and the water, sewerage and waste management sectors. The main contributors to the increase in manufacturing output were the manufacture of transport equipment, other manufacturing and repair and the manufacture of basic metals and metal products. Iron and steel made he largest contribution to the increase with growth of 34.3%, its highest since records began in January 1998.

e-Commerce Above Estimates But Down On Year

E-commerce accounted for 18% of turnover in 2012 down from 19% in 2011 but above the 2008 estimate of 14%. Business to business electronic data interchange (EDI) sales made up 67% of the total of e-commerce sales and the rest was accounted for by business to household website sales (33%). The website sales accounted for 6%, or £164bn, of business turnover in 2012 compared to 5%, or £134bn, in 2012. Broadband Internet had reached 95% of businesses and 82% had a website.

The largest companies still dominate e-commerce sales with businesses of 1000 or over employees accounting for 51% of all e-commerce sales. Total e-commerce sales amounted to £335bn in 2008, now sales have reached £492bn. Average annual growth between 2008 and 2012 was 10%. Total growth over the period 2008-2012 was 47%.

The highest levels of total e-commerce by industry sector were reported in wholesale and manufacturing with £172bn and £157bn respectively. The accommodation and food services sector reported low sales by comparison with £9.1bn but reported the highest proportional increase of 57% annually.

Website sales have reported steady growth in recent years. In 2008 13% of businesses sold over a website reporting sales valuing £92bn. In 2012 18% of businesses sold over a website with sales of £164bn. The total value of website sales increased to 6% of total business turnover. The largest companies accounted for half of all sales. The smallest businesses accounted for only 0.7% of the total 6% of turnover from website sales.

The wholesale sector reported the highest amount of website sales with £50bn. The retail sector reported the highest proportion of businesses making sales over a website with 34% and construction the lowest with 7%.

EDI sales decreased by £23bn in 2012 to £328bn from £351bn. EDI accounted for 12% of total business turnover in the UK in 2012 (the decrease may be accounted for by things like sampling variability). Only 6% of businesses sold by EDI while three times as many businesses used websites compared to EDI but sales values over EDI were double at £328bn compared to £168bn.

The manufacturing sector made to highest amount of sales in 2012 with £145bn. The wholesale sector followed with £122bn but also saw the biggest decrease in EDI sales value down 14% or £20bn from £142bn in 2011.

Social media or websites and applications that enable users to share content and participate in social networking has enabled businesses to change the way they interact with customers. In 2012, 44% of businesses reported they had used social media such as Facebook and LinkedIn. Nearly a quarter had used a blog or a microblog such as Twitter. Multimedia content sharing websites like YouTube or Flickr were used by 15% of businesses. Half of large businesses have content sharing websites. The ICT sector had the highest rate of use with 53% and transport and storage the lowest with 5%.

In 2012, 68 of businesses provided NIC details online and 89% of businesses completed their VAT returns over the Internet.

Industrial Output Increase Over Quarter

Industrial production output increased by 0.6% between Q2 and Q3 2013 according to a statistical bulletin from the ONS. The largest contribution to the overall figure came from manufacturing with an increase of 0.9% similar to that in Q2 2013.

Over the year production was 2.2% up in September 2013. The contribution of mining and quarrying was an increase in output of 11.5%, manufacturing a rise of 0.8%, a rise in water supply, sewerage and waste management of 7.1%. Electricity, gas, steam and air output fell by 3.4%.

The monthly comparison shows that production and manufacturing increased their output by 0.9% and 1.2% respectively between August and September 2013.

UK Companies Are Maintaining Profitability

The profitability of UK non-financial corporations in Q2 2013 as measured by net rate of return (NNR) was estimated by 11.4% according to the ONS. It compares well with the last 18 months but is lower than 2011. The revised estimate for Q1 was 11.3%.

The manufacturing sector reported net rate of return of 7.2% in Q2 2013 one of the lowest levels since 2003. Services NRR was estimated to have been 15.1% in Q2 equal to Q1 but higher than the last two and a half years. UK continental shelf companies (oil & gas) NRR, which are not directly comparable with other industrial sectors and can be very volatile, grew by 37.4%. Non-UKCS companies grew by 10.7%.

Putting it into context, real GDP grew by 0.7% in Q2 2013 and the NRR of UK companies was 11.4%, an increase of 0.1%. The operating profits of UK non-financial corporations increased by 1.2% (according to Quarterly National Accounts) suggesting that profits are increasing at a faster rate than capital employed.

Industrial Output Falls By 1.5%

Industrial output decreased by 1.5% between August 2012 and 2013 and reflects a 0.2% fall in manufacturing, 10.2% in mining and quarrying and 3.5% in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning according to the ONS.

A large upward contribution came from transport equipment manufacturing with an increase of 12.5% mainly from the manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers.

The monthly comparison shows a decrease of 1.1% between July and August 2013. All four sectors fell with the biggest falls in manufacturing at 1.2%.

Fall In Production Of 2.3%

Production output fell by 2.3% between May 2012 and May 2013 according to a statistical bulletin from the ONS. Three of he main components of the index fell only water supply, sewerage and waste management grew, by 2.6%. Manufacturing fell by 2.9%, mining and quarrying by 3.5%. The monthly comparison shows that production remained stable between April and May. Manufacturing fell by 0.8%.

Fatalities In The Workplace

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) fatalities in the workplace provisional statistics for 2012-13 say that the number of workers fatally injured at work fell in the year 2012-13 to 148. The figure of 148 is 18% lower than the average for the last five years and gives a fatal injury ratio of 0.5 deaths per 100,000 workers, down from the 5-year average of 0.6 per 100,000. The summary also tells us that 113 members of the public were also fatally injured in accidents related to work. The figure excludes 310 related to railways (including suicide and trespass).

The main industry sectors in terms of fatalities breakdown as follows: agriculture 29; mining and quarrying 2; manufacturing 20; gas, electricity and water 12; construction 39 and services 46. When applying a ration of fatal injuries per 100,000 workers the statistics are as follows: agriculture 8.8; manufacturing 0.7; gas electricity and water 8.2; construction 1.9; and services 0.2, and all industries 0.5.

When fatal injuries suffered by members of the public are included the total figure for all industries rises to 571. There were 7 fatalities among members of the public in agriculture, 1 in manufacturing 4 in gas, electricity and water, 3 of which were in waste and recycling, 5 in construction and 406 in services.

Regional comparison of number and rate of fatal injuries of the 148 shows that the North East recorded 2 fatalities in 2012-13 and a 5 year average of 6. The South East reported 22 fatalities and a 5 year average of 16. Scotland also reported a total of 22 and a 5 year average of 22. It should be noted that there are strong regional differences in industry and occupation variables.

Mining Increases Production In March

Production output increased by 0.2% between Q4 2012 and Q1 2013 according to the ONS. Manufacturing fell by 0.3% over the same period.

The increase in overall production was mainly due to an increase of 4% from mining and quarrying. The increase from the mining and quarrying sector follows the reduced output of Q4 caused by maintenance work in the North Sea. The index covers 15.6% of GDP, services covers 77% and construction 6.8% with the other 0.6% being accounted for by agriculture.

The monthly comparison shows that between February and March 2013 production rose by 0.7%. Manufacturing output increased by 1.1% and the coldest March since 1962 helped to increase demand for the output of the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning sub-sector by 2.4%.

February Production Down On January Up On Year

Production was down by 2.2% and manufacturing in particular was down by 1.4% in February 2013 compared with February 2012 according to production figures from the ONS. All production sectors reported a fall with the most significant being manufacturing and mining and quarrying.

The monthly comparison shows that production grew by 1% and manufacturing in particular grew by 0.8%. All sectors grew over the month.

Fall In Productivity In Q4 2012

Labour productivity on an output per hour basis fell by 0.5% in Q4 of 2012 and by 0.8% in manufacturing. Output per hour fell by 0.5% in the services sector. Market sector productivity fell by 0.6%, its lowest level since 2005.

Labour costs increased by 0.5% in Q4 2012, 1.8% higher than 2011. Labour costs in manufacturing increased by 1.7%, 7.4% higher than 2011.

Gross value added (GVA) fell by 0.3% while the number of workers increased by 0.6%, jobs increased by 0.5% and hours by 0.3%. Falling output with rising workers, jobs and hours suggests output per worker and output per job fell by 0.8% and output per hour fell by 0.5% (labour productivity is also calculable as growth of GVA minus growth of labour input).

Some people have more than one job which results in small differences between growth of output per worker and growth of output per job.

Production Fell By 2.9% In January

Production fell in January by an estimated 2.9% compared with January 2012 according to the ONS, manufacturing fell by 3%. Between Decmber 2012 and January 2013 production fell by 1.2%.

The falls in January are partly due to falls in mining and quarrying of 9.3%, manufacturing of 3% and waste management of 2.2%. An increase of 4.5% in energy production partially offset the decreases in the other sectors.

Industrial Production Continues To Fall

Production fell by 0.3% in both the euro area and the EU27 in November 2012 compared with October according to a statistical bulletin from Eurostat. Production had also fallen in October by 1% in the euro area and 0.8% in the EU27. Using the annual comparison, industrial production fell by 3.7% in the euro area and by 3.3% in the EU27.

Looking at the main components of the monthly index energy production fell by 1.6% in the euro area and 0.7% in the EU27. Durable consumer goods production fell by 1.1% in the euro area and by 1.4% in the EU27, non-durables fell by 1.2% in both zones. Intermediate goods fell by 0.3% and 0.4% respectively. Capital goods was the only component part to show any growth. There was 0.7% growth in capital goods production in the euro area and 0.5% in the EU27.

Over the year to November 2012 durables fell by 7.7% in the euro area and 6.8% in the EU27, non-durables by 3% and 2.7% respectively. Intermediate goods production fell by 4.8% and 4.3% respectively. Capital goods fell by 4.4% in the euro area and 3.7% in the EU27 but energy production increased by 0.5% in the euro area but fell in the EU27 by 0.6%.

Manufacturing Down 2.1% Production By 2.4%

The index of production published by the ONS shows that production was down by 2.4% in November 2012 compared with November 2011. Manufacturing was down by 2.1%.

The monthly analysis shows that production actually rose by 0.3% during the month October to November 2012. Large increases in production in mining and quarrying (8.7%) were offset by falls in manufacturing (0.3%) and energy supply (4.1%).

The annual analysis for November 2012 and November 2011 also shows that mining and quarrying fell by 13% within which oil and gas extraction decreased by 17.8% contributing 13.4% to the sector fall. Manufacturing fell 2.1% over the year with food manufacturing, beverages and tobacco contributing a fall of 4.6% and chemicals and chemical products 6.8%. Energy supply increased by 4.4% and water supply and waste management increased by 2.4%.