Data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that Manufacturing output grew by +0.6% in the three months to April 2026, compared with the three months to January 2026, with 8 of the 13 subsectors increasing over this period.
The largest positive contributors to this growth were “manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products & pharmaceutical preparations” (+2.2%), “manufacture of computer, electronic & optical products” (+2.9%) and “other manufacturing & repair” (+2.3%). These growths were partially offset by falls elsewhere, with the largest negative contributions coming from “manufacture of machinery & equipment n.e.c.” (-4.0%) and “manufacture of electrical equipment” (-4.4%).
At the sub-sector level, output of the capital goods industries – where most purchasers of manufacturing technology equipment can be found – in the latest 3 months (February to April 2026) was +0.6% higher than in the previous period (November 2025 to January 2026) and +2.2% up on a year earlier (February to April 2025).
In terms of key customer industries for the manufacturing technology sector, automotive was up +0.8% compared to the previous period, but -7.0% down on the same period a year earlier due to softer demand (including falling exports) and production challenges. Metal products was up +0.9% compared to the previous period, and +3.7% up on the same period a year earlier (interestingly, some of this industry will be sub-contractors to the automotive manufacturers, but the year-on-year fall in automotive does not seem to have adversely affected metal products to the same extent), Aerospace was up +0.1% compared to the previous period, and up +3.5% on the same period a year earlier. Machinery (also known as mechanical engineering) continued to perform less strongly than the other key customer industries and is down -4.0% compared to the previous period, and -3.6% down on the same period a year earlier. You can download the ONS Statistical Bulletin from their website at https://www.ons.gov.uk/releasecalendar (12 June) or request it from MTA