Coronavirus: Manufacturers suffer record quarterly decline - CBI
The figures show a big slump in the three months to June as the wider economy faces an unprecedented downturn due to the pandemic.
Monday 22 June 2020 13:39, UK
Britain's industrial output suffered its biggest quarterly fall on record in the three months to June, according to latest CBI figures.
The survey also pointed to further decline ahead, as the manufacturing sector faces major disruption as a result of the coronavirus crisis.
It comes as ministers prepare to launch latest plans to ease the lockdown by reopening further parts of the economy - as Britain faces a recession of unprecedented scale.
The CBI's measure of industrial output for the latest period sank to -57 to -54, its lowest level since it started in July 1975.
Other metrics looking at order books for factories were also at or close to record lows.
Expectations for the next three months were improved compared to May but still deep in negative territory and lower than the long-run average.
Tom Crotty, group director of chemicals producer INEOS and chair of the CBI's manufacturing council, said: "The COVID-19 crisis has been hugely challenging for the manufacturing sector, and these figures reflect the tough circumstances faced by firms across the country."
The CBI said the steepest falls in production came in the car making, mechanical engineering and metals sectors.
It comes after official data for April showed a record 28.5% slump in factory output - in the first full month of the coronavirus lockdown - as the overall economy contracted by 20.4%.
Some of the factories that closed during the period have now begun to reopen while introducing social distancing measures though others - such as Vauxhall's factory in Ellesmere Port - have stayed shut as demand remains weak.
Elsewhere in the economy, ministers last week allowed non-essential retailers to reopen.
But latest footfall figures from data analysts Springboard showed that while shopping visits did jump 45% on the previous week, they were 54% lower compared to the same period last year.