The UK’s manufacturing industry has returned to growth and is showing “tentative signs of recovery”, according to a closely-watched survey.
Both output and new orders increased in March, while business optimism also hit an 11-month high, S&P Global/CIPS UK found.
The firms’ manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) score rose to a better-than-expected 50.3 last month, up from 47.5 in February.
Any figure above 50 represents growth. March was the first time the threshold had been reached since July 2022 – 20 months ago – and comes following growing concern about the sector.
Accrol Group Holdings plc (LON:ACRL) is the UK’s leading independent tissue converter, producing toilet tissue, kitchen towel, facial tissue and biodegradable wet wipes. The UK soft tissue market is worth £1.6bn with private label products comprising circa 50%. Accrol is the leading supplier to the private label market, which is growing at over 8% year on year.