UK manufacturing output increased by 0.9% during the third quarter of 2026, supported by stronger production of electronic equipment, pharmaceuticals and machinery, according to figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The increase covered July to September compared with April to June, with eight of the 13 manufacturing subsectors recording growth. Factory output also rose by 0.7% in September alone, although the monthly figures showed continued weakness in metals production and several other activities.
Manufacturing was the main positive contributor to wider industrial production during the quarter. Total production output increased by just 0.1%, however, as declines in electricity and gas supply, water-related activities, and mining offset much of the improvement in manufacturing.
Computer, electronic and optical products provided the largest positive contribution to manufacturing growth, with output increasing by 4.6% during the quarter. Basic pharmaceutical products and preparations rose by 2.1%, while machinery and equipment manufacturing expanded by 3.0%.
These gains contrasted with a 2.0% contraction in rubber, plastics and other non-metallic mineral products. Textiles, clothing and leather manufacturing declined by 3.7%, while basic metals and metal products fell by 0.7%.
The figures indicate that the quarterly expansion was supported by several technology-intensive manufacturing industries rather than uniform growth across the sector. Electronics and machinery production increased over the three-month period while some materials industries continued to experience falling output.
September brought a further monthly improvement. Manufacturing output increased by 0.7%, matching the revised growth recorded in August, with seven of the 13 subsectors reporting higher production.
Food products, beverages and tobacco provided the largest positive contribution during September, with output increasing by 2.9% following a 0.5% decline in August. Other manufacturing and repair activities grew by 3.7%, reversing a 2.0% fall in the preceding month.
Basic metals and metal products moved in the opposite direction, contracting by 2.1% during September. Computer, electronic and optical products also declined by 2.1% on the month, despite having delivered the strongest positive contribution across the quarter.
The difference between the monthly and quarterly electronics figures reflects the periods being measured. Quarterly growth compares the average level of production across three months with the preceding three-month period, while a monthly movement compares successive individual months.
A manufacturing industry can therefore record strong quarterly growth even when output declines during the final month of that quarter. Equally, an improvement in one month does not necessarily establish a sustained recovery across a longer period.
The ONS Index of Production measures changes in the volume of industrial output, rather than the cash value of goods sold. Most of the underlying information comes from business turnover returns adjusted to remove the effect of price changes, supplemented by direct volume measures for selected activities.
This distinction becomes important when manufacturers face changing input and selling prices. Higher turnover can arise from increased prices, additional output or a combination of both. The production index is intended to distinguish changes in real industrial activity from movements attributable to prices.
Separate producer price figures for September showed that the prices of materials and fuels purchased by manufacturers had increased by 8.3% over the preceding year. Factory gate prices rose by 4.6% over the same period.
Those measures describe price inflation rather than production volumes, but they provide context for the operating conditions facing manufacturers. The difference between changes in input and selling prices does not itself establish a company's profit margin, which also depends on labour, energy use, contracts, efficiency and other costs.
Manufacturers may experience these pressures differently according to their processes and purchasing arrangements. A business producing precision electronic assemblies may have a different cost structure from a metal processor or a manufacturer of building materials, even when the same broad economic conditions affect them.
Production data also cannot determine whether greater output resulted from additional labour, longer operating hours, improved machine utilisation or investment in equipment. Such conclusions require information about the resources used to achieve the reported production level.
Within wider industrial production, electricity and gas output declined by 2.1% during the quarter, while water supply and sewerage fell by 1.5%. Mining and quarrying recorded a 2.2% contraction.
The negative movements largely offset the positive contribution from manufacturing, leaving total production growth substantially below the increase in factory output.
On a monthly basis, total production increased by 0.3% in September. Manufacturing rose by 0.7% and mining and quarrying by 1.4%, while electricity and gas contracted by 0.3% and water-related activities declined by 1.7%.
The latest release also incorporated revisions to previously published manufacturing estimates. August's monthly manufacturing increase was revised from 1.2% to 0.7%, while July's increase was revised from 1.0% to 0.8%.
These revisions reflect the continuing collection and processing of information from businesses. The ONS updates earlier estimates as additional survey returns become available and previously submitted data are revised.
For September, the Monthly Business Survey achieved a turnover-weighted response rate of 87.8% across the relevant production industries. The ONS expects further returns to be incorporated into subsequent releases, meaning the current estimates may change.
The quarterly manufacturing figures nonetheless show expansion across eight subsectors, led by electronics, pharmaceuticals and machinery. The weaker results for metals, plastics and other industries indicate that the increase was uneven across the manufacturing base.
October's production figures are scheduled for release on 11 December 2026. They will provide the next indication of whether September's increase continued into the fourth quarter, alongside further revisions to the preceding months.
