UK Export Growth Is Slowing Down

According to two new surveys that came out yesterday UK export growth is slowing down, jobs are being lost and manufacturers’ confidence is decreasing as well.
The British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) survey shows growth is in decline in both manufacturing and services.But manufacturing confidence, sales, prices, and growth forecasts are dropping more sharply.Meanwhile another survey compiled by Markit added that manufacturers are starting to cut jobs.Its jobs index slipped below the 50 mark for the first time since April 2013 indicating a reduction in staff across manufacturing.Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit said: "Job cuts send a signal that manufacturers are becoming more cautious about the future, which may lead to a further scaling-back of production at some firms in coming months."Markit's overall purchasing managers' index for September is still above the critical 50 level. But at 51.5, it has fallen 0.1 from August and is close to the two-year low that it hit in June.Speaking about his organisation's economic survey for the third quarter, John Longworth, Director General at the BCC said: "The real area of concern is manufacturing.""Confidence is low, as growth continued to fall, and our measure of manufacturing export growth hit a six year low."Services growth, on the other hand, dipped only slightly and overall trends show the sector remains relatively strong and stable."