ONS Production Output Report: February 2025
This summary is based on information from the Office for National Statistics’ Index of Production, UK: December 2024, highlighting recent trends in the UK’s production industries, including manufacturing, mining and quarrying, energy supply, and water and waste management.
Monthly Performance Analysis
In December 2024, the UK’s monthly production output increased by 0.5%, following falls in both October 2024 (0.6%) and November 2024 (0.5%).
The rise in monthly output resulted from increases in “manufacturing” (0.7%) and “mining and quarrying” (1.5%). However, these were partially offset by decreases in “electricity and gas” (down 0.6%) and “water supply and sewerage” (down 0.4%).
The monthly increase saw growth in 7 of its 13 manufacturing subsectors. The most notable increases in December 2024 came from “basic pharmaceutical products”, “machinery and equipment” and “other manufacturing and repair” which rose by 5.1%, 5.9% and 2.3%, respectively.
Quarterly Trends
Production output in Q4 (Oct to Dec 2024) was estimated to have grown by 0.8% compared to Q3 (Jul to Sep 2024). This marks the fifth consecutive quarterly decline in product output.
The main contributor to this fall was “manufacturing” which fell by 0.7%. This was supported by negative contributions in “mining and quarrying” and “electricity and gas” which were down by 2.5% and 0.7% respectively. However, this was partially offset by a 1.2% increase in “water supply and sewerage”.
Annual Review
Annual production output fell by 1.7% in 2024, signifying weaknesses across all four sectors. “Mining and quarrying” (7.2%) and “manufacturing” (0.7%) were the most negative contributors across the year.
To summarise, in December 2024, the UK’s production output increased by 0.5%, driven by growth in manufacturing and mining and quarrying, partially offset by declines in electricity and gas, as well as water supply and sewerage. Quarterly production output grew by 0.8%, despite a continued downward trend in manufacturing. However, the annual review highlights an overall decline of 1.7% in production output, with significant weaknesses across all key sectors.
Source: Index of Production, UK – Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)
