UK manufacturing output increased by 1.0% in the second quarter of 2026, providing one of the stronger elements in an otherwise uneven set of production figures as the wider economy grew by 0.4%. Figures from the Office for National Statistics show manufacturing expanding between April and June even though total production output was unchanged over the quarter.
Manufacturing and mining and quarrying grew by 1.0% and 0.2% respectively, but those gains were offset elsewhere in production. Electricity, gas, steam, and air-conditioning supply fell by 2.3%, while water supply, sewerage, waste management, and remediation activities declined by 3.7%.
Seven of the 13 manufacturing subsectors made positive contributions to quarterly growth. Basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations recorded the strongest increase at 4.2%, giving the sector a sizeable role in the overall manufacturing result.
The quarterly picture was broader than pharmaceuticals alone. Separate monthly output data show computer, electronic, and optical products rising by 3.0% over the three months to June, while machinery and equipment increased by 2.6%. Both are useful indicators of activity in higher-value manufacturing categories tied closely to industrial investment and capital equipment.
June itself was considerably weaker. Manufacturing output fell by 0.5% during the month after a 0.2% decline in May and a 0.5% increase in April. Seven of the 13 manufacturing subsectors contracted in June, leaving the second-quarter increase dependent on gains accumulated earlier in the period rather than a steadily improving monthly trajectory.
Capital spending provides a firmer element in the figures. Gross fixed capital formation increased by 1.2% during the second quarter and stood 2.7% above its level a year earlier. The ONS identified information and communication technology, other machinery and equipment, and hardware investment among the main contributors.
Business investment increased by 1.7% quarter on quarter and by 0.8% compared with the same period of 2025. Rising machinery and hardware expenditure can precede output gains because automation projects, equipment replacement, digital infrastructure, and new production assets often pass through installation and commissioning before appearing fully in factory output.
Inventories moved in the opposite direction. Excluding balancing and alignment adjustments, chained-volume inventories fell by £1.382bn during the quarter, mainly because of a reduction in manufacturing stocks. The national accounts do not establish whether that reflects weaker expectations, deliberate stock reduction, improved inventory discipline, or a combination of those factors.
The wider UK economy expanded by 0.4% after growth of 0.6% in the first quarter. Services increased by 0.5%, construction by 0.3%, and real GDP per head by 0.4%. GDP was 1.2% higher than a year earlier, while 15 of the 20 broad economic subsectors expanded during the latest quarter.
Those wider figures leave manufacturing in an unusual position. Quarterly output growth was twice the rate recorded by the economy as a whole, yet the final month of the period produced a clear contraction. Investment data point towards companies continuing to commit capital, but monthly production has not developed the consistency that would turn one strong quarter into an obvious recovery trend.
The composition of growth will therefore matter as much as the aggregate number during the second half of the year. Pharmaceuticals made the largest contribution in the latest quarter, while electronics and machinery also advanced over the three-month period. If those gains broaden across more subsectors, the 1.0% increase may prove a useful turning point; if June’s weakness persists, the headline quarterly rate will have flattered the underlying direction.
The ONS will publish the next quarterly national accounts on 30 September, when more detailed information and revisions will provide a firmer assessment of the period. For now, manufacturing has delivered a genuine quarterly expansion alongside rising capital investment, but it enters the third quarter after a monthly fall rather than with uninterrupted momentum.
