Today's PMI Manufacturing stats - Barclays' comment

Helena Sans, Head of Manufacturing at Barclays, comments on today's PMI manufacturing figures.

“Today’s modest uptick in performance is welcome and shows that manufacturers are just getting on with business. The sector continues to report growth in output and in September saw a healthy rise in new orders which encouragingly was fed by both domestic and overseas markets though cost challenges continue to pose a threat with inflationary pressures never too far away.

“As encouraging as any improvement in performance is, at a time when we are seeing the fastest pace of innovation in technology, it’s frustrating to see manufacturing still stuck in a period of low growth. What the sector needs now is manufacturers following through, more and quicker, on investment intentions, particularly in areas such as smart tech, which is vital if the sector is to boost productivity and remain competitive at an international level.”

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