Pound Drop Boosts U.K. Manufacturing, Pushes Up Factories’ Costs
- Activity growing at the fastest pace in 2 1/2 years: Markit
- Weaker sterling helped push up factory prices for eighth month
What Does Brexit Mean for the British Pound?
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U.K. manufacturing grew at the fastest pace in 2 1/2 years in December, helped by the pound’s depreciation since the vote to leave the European Union.
After dipping sharply in the wake of the Brexit referendum -- dropping below the key 50 level in July -- the IHS Markit Purchasing Managers Index has since recovered strongly and was at 56.1 last month. That’s up from 53.6 in November and marks the highest level since June 2014. It also beat the median forecast of economists in a Bloomberg News survey for a reading of 53.3.