Over 3,500 UK manufacturers go under in two years

Posted on 30 Jul 2012

There have been over 9,000 insolvencies in construction and manufacturing since September 2010, PwC figures revealed, despite the two sectors enjoying one of the best quarters in nearly two years.

Overall, since the third quarter of 2010 3,586 manufacturing companies have gone under and of those, 1,027 have been industrial manufacturing companies, with the remainder including aerospace and defence, automotive, chemicals, metals and parts of transport and logistics.

In the second quarter of 2012 there were nearly 8.36% fewer insolvencies in manufacturing than in the previous quarter.

However, where most regions enjoyed a relatively good quarter, London lost 66 manufacturing firms – the biggest rise in any UK region at 50%.

London suffered 120 construction insolvencies in Q2 and has lost 962 firms overall in the industry since Q3 2010. Most regions again enjoyed a slightly better quarter with Yorkshire, the West and East regions faring better.

In the West Midlands there were 54 manufacturing insolvencies for Q2 this year, compared to 83 in Q1 of this year, about 35% fewer.

Across all sectors there were 11% fewer insolvencies this quarter than the previous one, but under the ongoing cloud of economic and unemployment uncertainty, PwC experts say the slight reprieve in figures may not signal a long term improvement with the same pressures continuing through to 2013.