Timber, paper and transport were the sectors reporting the most job cuts and the weakest output in September, according to the latest Markit/Cips survey.
The declines were against a background of growth for the UK manufacturing sector in September – the first growth in three months.
“The modest return to growth of UK manufacturing output in September is a positive, but it is hard to escape the fact that the sector’s performance has weakened substantially since the opening quarter’s growth surge,” said Markit economist Rob Dobson.
“These data suggest that the positive contribution of manufacturing to the broader economic recovery is likely to remain modest, at best, through the remainder of the year.”
The eurozone manufacturing sector contracted at the fastest pace for two years in September.
