The latest ‘Manufacturing – The Facts’ report by Make UK lays out a positive outlook regarding the state of British manufacturing. The country moves ahead one place into 8th, overtaking France in manufacturing rankings.
Output in the British manufacturing sector was worth approximately £224 billion in 2022, with transport and aerospace making up a large proportion of growth from the sector.
Sector breakdown
The Make UK report also highlights the fact that the manufacturing sector has provided over 2.6 million jobs for the British economy, while the average wage in the sector was 9% higher than other sectors, on average.
49% of the goods accounted for in figures were exports, illustrating the current strength of the current market.
Regionally, the area that has benefitted the most from a healthier manufacturing sector is the North West, with output sitting at £28 billion, productivity at 109.8%, and 314,000 people it is fair to say that the North West is in good shape. The South-East is the other big winner in this mini manufacturing boom with output sitting at £24.9 billion, productivity at 112.8% and 292,000 employed in the sector, in the region.
How does manufacturing in the UK look?
In terms of exports, it is clear to see why the government was keen to strengthen trade relations between the UK and USA, post Brexit. The export value to the USA is £56 billion, £19.7 more than the nearest country (The Netherlands).
There are manufacturing subsectors that had substantial growth over past couple of years with food and drink showing growth of over 20%, Chemicals and pharma growing by over 17% and notably the plastics and rubber industry enjoyed a growth spurt, with the sector growing by 10% in the past two years.
What sectors Grew?
This industry growth within the plastics and rubber sector will be represented at Interplas and that is represented by the size of this year’s show. With over 500 exhibitors, this year’s show is set to be the biggest for over 20 years and reflects progress within the industry.
For more information, including registration, click here: https://interplasuk.com/