CBI SURVEY POINTS TO SURGE IN U.K. OUTPUT
British manufacturers expect output to
grow rapidly in the four coming months, a Confederation of
British Industry (CBI) survey shows.
    The CBI's monthly trends survey for March shows that 43 pct
of the 1,685 polled U.K. Firms expect to raise output in the
next four months. Only nine pct expect output to fall while 47
pct said production would likely remain unchanged.
    The CBI said the positive balance between firms expecting
production to rise and those forecasting a fall, at 34 pct, was
the highest such figure recorded since 1977.
    In the CBI's February survey, 37 pct of companies expected
a rise in output while 54 pct forecast production would remain
at present levels and eight pct expected production to drop.
    The survey also showed that 23 pct of the polled companies
consider current order books to be above normal while 58 pct
view them as normal and only 19 pct regard them as below
normal.
    This was the highest positive balance since the question
was first asked more than 10 years ago, the CBI said.
    In February, the figures were 24 pct, 22 pct and 54 pct
respectively.
    Companies also rated their export possibilities higher. Of
all polled companies, 23 pct rated their export order books to
be above normal and 53 pct described them as normal while only
23 pct believed export orders were below normal levels.
    In February, 25 pct thought their export books were below
normal and 50 pct believed them to be about normal. At 23 pct,
the proportion of companies rating their export books above
normal was unchanged between February and March.
    On prices, the survey showed that 62 pct of companies
expect average prices at which domestic orders are booked will
remain unchanged in the coming four months, up from 57 pct in
February.
    From 38 pct in February, only 31 pct of firms now expect
prices to rise before July. Six pct forecast prices will fall,
against four pct a month earlier.
    Commenting on the survey, CBI economic situation committee
chairman David Wigglesworth said sterling's more competitive
level against many European currencies had improved exports.
    "But interest rates are still much higher than in our
competitor countries and British manufacturers will still have
to work hard to win new business both in overseas markets and
in the substitution of British-made goods for imports here at
home," he said.
 REUTER
