Output, orders and employment fall

Smaller manufacturers (SMEs) faced tough trading conditions over the past quarter, with output, orders and employment all falling.

The quarterly CBI survey, conducted between 23 March 2005 and 13 April 2005, shows 20 per cent of firms saw orders rise over the past three months but 39 per cent saw them fall. The balance of minus 19 per cent compares with a balance of plus three per cent in the previous survey.

Over the next three months, SMEs overall expect orders to remain broadly unchanged. However, this masks a contrast between small firms predicting a fall and medium-sized firms expecting a rise.

Numbers employed by SMEs fell over the past three months, with 17 per cent of firms taking on more staff and 25 per cent taking on fewer, a balance of minus nine per cent.

Small firms reported the sharpest falls in numbers employed since October 2003, and although medium-sized firms reported broadly unchanged numbers, they expect to reduce employment over the next three months.