Factories booming

MANUFACTURING growth picked up in Britain last month with factory output rising more quickly than in Germany, France, Italy and Spain.

An index of factory activity by research group IHS Markit – where 50 is the cut off between growth and decline – rose from 53 in August to 53.8 in September. The sector has been growing for 26 straight months after the fall in the pound following the Brexit vote.

Meanwhile, business confidence among UK manufacturers rose to its highest for three months. But other European countries had a less positive month.