1 March 2011 |
Lindsay Clark
Growth in UK
manufacturing remained at a record level in February, a survey of buyers found.
The seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing PMI posted 61.5 last month,
unchanged from January’s record high. The PMI has been above the 50 mark, which
indicates no change, for 19 successive months.
However, purchasing managers
were struggling with escalating prices in the manufacturing sector. The seasonally adjusted input prices index stood at 83.7
in February, down only slightly compared to the previous month and remaining close to
a 10-year peak.
Manufacturers also
linked input cost rises to increased global demand for a number of items and to
ongoing supply chain shortages. Purchasing activity rose markedly in February,
with the extent of the increase only slightly less marked than January’s high
for more than 16 years.
CIPS CEO David
Noble, said: “Strong growth in demand across the manufacturing
sector continued to put breath in the sails of the UK economy in February. This
was the case at home as well as overseas leading to record increases in output
and in turn to more jobs being created.
“The fly in the ointment remains macro-level
inflation which is likely to go from bad to worse due to the unrest in Libya
and escalating oil prices. Purchasing managers reported raw materials costs
were continuing to rise at historically high levels during February, leading
many to pass on higher purchasing costs to their clients.”
