Manufacturing in surprise bounce back
British manufacturing activity unexpectedly grew for the first time in three months in September, although a slide in new export orders highlighted the dangers facing the sluggish recovery, a survey showed.
The Markit/CIPS manufacturing PMI headline activity index rose to 51.1 last month from an upwardly revised 49.4 in August. This was well above the 48.6 forecast in a Reuters poll, and none of the 31 economists surveyed had expected a reading above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.
The output component of the index bounced back with its strongest reading in five months after falling in August for the first time in more than two years.
Manufacturing in the Eurozone shrank at its fastest pace in two years in September, according to Markit.
Activity dropped to 48.5 last month, from 49 in August. A reading below 50 indicates contraction