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Manufacturers record surge in exports as pound gets weaker

25
Apr '08

Strong performance in exports coupled with weakening pound have brought a ray of hope for the manufacturing sector which is presently facing an uptrend after going through a depression for the last six months.

A surge was recorded in both the manufacturing orders and its output ending six months of stagnation. Infact, Scottish orders are doing far better than the manufacturing units in other parts of UK.

However, experts have warned manufacturers of a probable decline in the industry in the second half of 2008.

Scottish manufactured export sales increased by 0.4 percent in real terms in the first quarter of 2007 and grew by 2.4 percent over the year. While textiles, fur and leather saw an increase of 12.3 percent, chemicals marked a decline of 2.0 percent.

Exports of footwear, handbags, furniture and other related products have also earned substantial revenues to the country.

Besides, following the hike in prices of oil and other crucial commodities, the average unit cost in manufacturing surged at the fastest rate in the past three and a half years. Even export prices touched the highest since 2004. However, despite continued expansion, employment in the sector dipped considerably.

Experts have observed that there has been a fair growth in almost all the sectors except for textiles. For the time being, the major task of the industrialists would be to sustain this growth.

Domestic enterprises have already showed encouraging signs by making plans of investing in training and innovation in spite of continuous rise in cost of inputs. With such determination and untiring efforts, it is hoped that overseas exports will maintain its growth rate even in the second half of this year.

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