David Kern Confirm Quotations

Today's manufacturing output figures were ... worse than the market expected. The sector continues to stagnate and is persistently failing to sustain a recovery. The figures also confirm that the sector was in technical recession in the first half of 2005, ... The manufacturing sector's acute underlying weaknesses reinforce our view that we will need further interest rate cuts later in the year.

Although earlier estimates have been revised up slightly, the new figures confirm that the sector was in technical recession in the first half of 2005. In spite of the minimal increase in output seen in July, the sector is persistently failing to establish a sustainable recovery.