The Guardian: CBI downplays chances of second pre-Brexit deadline boost

24 September 2019

The chances of a repeat of the pre-Brexit deadline boost to manufacturing have diminished following a downbeat survey from the CBI showing the bleakest outlook for industry in more than a decade.

The employers’ organisation said order books were shrinking and output was set to fall in the coming months amid Brexit uncertainty and global trade tensions.

Growth in the first three months of 2019 was boosted by industry building up stocks of goods ahead of the original 29 March date set for the UK’s departure from the European Union.

But the latest snapshot of manufacturing from the CBI found no signs of a repeat in the run-up to the new deadline of 31 October.

The survey of 269 firms conducted in late August and earlySeptember found that 13% of manufacturers said total order books were above normal, and 41% said they were below normal. The balance of -28 points compared with -13% the previous month.

Only 6% of firms said their export order books were above normal, while 37% said they were below normal. After rounding, the CBI said the balance of -32% was almost double the -15% in August. [...]

Full article on The Guardian

CBI: Manufacturing output steady while orders slump

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