UK’s manufacturing sector set to achieve fastest growth in Europe
6 January 2014
The UK’s manufacturing sector is set to grow by 2.7% in 2014, outperforming its European counterparts, according to manufacturing trade body EEF and think-tank Oxford Economics.
Mon, 6 Jan 2014The UK’s manufacturing sector is set to grow by 2.7% in 2014, outperforming its European counterparts, according to manufacturing trade body EEF and think-tank Oxford Economics.
By contrast, Austria and Belgium’s manufacturing sectors are expected to grow by 2.4%, Germany 1.6% and France 0.7%.
Chris Harries, senior consultant at engineering and manufacturing recruiter Core Talent Recruitment, tells recruiter.co.uk he started noticing an improvement in the sector in the second half of 2013: “The biggest thing I noticed in the summer of 2013 is that people have decided that they have the confidence to hire.
“The second half of 2013 was a lot better for manufacturing and we’ve recruited additional consultants as our business has grown. The recession has forced businesses to become much leaner in terms of headcount and inventory costs, so that now most manufacturing businesses have a much better idea of what their costs are.”
Slightly over half of the companies surveyed are expecting the number of permanent employees to increase, but just 2% expect the increase to be significant, with the rest expecting moderate growth.
The forecast is reflected in the sentiment of companies in the sector, with 70% of firms expecting an improvement in the UK’s economy and just 5% projecting conditions to deteriorate compared to 2013.
By contrast, Austria and Belgium’s manufacturing sectors are expected to grow by 2.4%, Germany 1.6% and France 0.7%.
Chris Harries, senior consultant at engineering and manufacturing recruiter Core Talent Recruitment, tells recruiter.co.uk he started noticing an improvement in the sector in the second half of 2013: “The biggest thing I noticed in the summer of 2013 is that people have decided that they have the confidence to hire.
“The second half of 2013 was a lot better for manufacturing and we’ve recruited additional consultants as our business has grown. The recession has forced businesses to become much leaner in terms of headcount and inventory costs, so that now most manufacturing businesses have a much better idea of what their costs are.”
Slightly over half of the companies surveyed are expecting the number of permanent employees to increase, but just 2% expect the increase to be significant, with the rest expecting moderate growth.
The forecast is reflected in the sentiment of companies in the sector, with 70% of firms expecting an improvement in the UK’s economy and just 5% projecting conditions to deteriorate compared to 2013.
