The British manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index (PMI), a gauge of industry activities, registered 51. 9 in December 2015, down from 52.5 (originally reported as 52.7) in November, survey provider Markit released on Monday.
Manufacturing production expanded for the 33rd successive month in December. The consumer goods sector remained the prime driver of production and new order growth, despite seeing its rates of expansion ease over the month.
Similar decelerations were also seen at intermediate and investment goods producers. Performance over 2015 as a whole was below that seen in 2014, Markit said. Over the final quarter as a whole, the average readings for the headline PMI, Output Index, New Orders Index, New Export Orders Index and Employment Index were all above their respective averages.
However, averages over 2015 were in each case below those achieved in 2014. "The UK manufacturing sector ended 2015 on a disappointing note, with its rate of growth slowing further from October's recent high back down towards the stagnation mark.
This suggests that industry will make, at best, only a marginal positive contribution to broader economic growth in the final quarter of the year," Senior Economist at survey compilers Markit Rob Dobson commented.
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