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| UK factory activity falls 'at fastest pace for three years' | UK factory activity falls 'at fastest pace for three years' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Activity among UK manufacturers contracted at its fastest pace for three years in July, according to a closely watched survey. | Activity among UK manufacturers contracted at its fastest pace for three years in July, according to a closely watched survey. |
| The Markit/CIPS manufacturing purchasing managers' index, the first to have full data since the UK's vote to leave the EU, showed a fall to 48.2, the lowest since February 2013. | The Markit/CIPS manufacturing purchasing managers' index, the first to have full data since the UK's vote to leave the EU, showed a fall to 48.2, the lowest since February 2013. |
| Its reading for June had been the strongest since January, at 52.4. | Its reading for June had been the strongest since January, at 52.4. |
| A reading above 50 indicates expansion, but below 50 indicates contraction. | A reading above 50 indicates expansion, but below 50 indicates contraction. |
| The decline was sharper than an initial reading of 49.1 indicated late last month. | |
| The Markit/CIPS manufacturing index is based on a survey of 600 industrial companies and reflects data on orders, output, employment, suppliers' delivery times and companies' inventories. | The Markit/CIPS manufacturing index is based on a survey of 600 industrial companies and reflects data on orders, output, employment, suppliers' delivery times and companies' inventories. |
| Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit, said the survey came "amid increasingly widespread reports that business activity has been adversely affected by the EU referendum". | Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit, said the survey came "amid increasingly widespread reports that business activity has been adversely affected by the EU referendum". |
| He added: "The downturn was felt across industry, with output scaled back across firms of all sizes and across the consumer, intermediate and investment goods sectors, although exporters did report a boost from the weaker pound." | He added: "The downturn was felt across industry, with output scaled back across firms of all sizes and across the consumer, intermediate and investment goods sectors, although exporters did report a boost from the weaker pound." |
| The latest economic data comes as the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) prepares to issue its latest interest rate-setting decision on Thursday. | |
| The MPC had been widely expected to cut interest rates last month, but unexpectedly left them unchanged. | |
| This time, rates are likely to fall from 0.5% to a new low of 0.25%, analysts predict. |