According to a report released by the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS), in April this year the UK's seasonally adjusted production index of manufacturing was down by 1.4 percent compared to March, showing the largest month-on-month fall since October 2012. According to the ONS, in the February-April period of this year, the country’s seasonally adjusted production index of manufacturing fell by 0.5 percent quarter on quarter and increased by 2.3 percent compared to the same quarter of last year.
Meanwhile, in April the production index for basic metals and metal products increased by three percent compared to the same month of the previous year and was down 3.7 percent compared to March. In the February-April period of this year, the production index for basic metals and metal products decreased by 1.8 percent compared to the previous quarter and increased by 5.8 percent compared to the same quarter of 2017.