Manufacturing industry is still in a “critical condition”, the British Chambers of Commerce said yesterday, reporting the results of its latest quarterly survey. The BCC did not expect the economy to go into recession, but said many manufacturers were facing serious cash flow problems despite the six cuts in interest rates this year.
The survey showed service industries slowing down but continuing to grow, with confidence at close to the levels recorded over the past year.
The balance of the proportion of the service sector companies expecting a rise in profits in the next 12 months over the proportion expecting a decline was plus 31.
Eve in manufacturing, the results for sales, orders and investment and confidence were closer to or even better than their last trough during the slowdown of 1998 – 1999.
But the responses for manufacturers’ cash flow were the weakest since 1992.
