ONS Production Output Report: June 2026
The latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) Index of Production release provides an overview of production sector performance in the three months to April 2026. The data suggests that growth momentum has slowed, with overall output edging into decline despite continued resilience in parts of the manufacturing sector.
Monthly Performance Analysis
Production output was unchanged in April 2026, following a decrease of 0.2% in March and growth of 0.3% in February. The flat monthly result reflects contrasting performances across the main production industries.
Manufacturing output increased by 0.4% during April, while mining and quarrying rose by 2.5%. These gains helped offset weaker activity elsewhere.
Energy production was the largest drag on output, with electricity and gas falling by 3.2%. Water supply and sewerage also declined by 0.5%, preventing overall production from returning to growth.
Within manufacturing, activity was positive across most subsectors, with 8 of the 13 reporting growth. The strongest contributions came from pharmaceutical manufacturing, which increased by 4.2%, and basic metals, which rose by 1.8%. In contrast, transport equipment fell by 1.9%, while electrical equipment recorded a sharper decline of 5.5%.
Three-monthly Trends
Looking at the broader picture, production output fell by 0.1% in the three months to April 2026 compared with the previous three-month period. This marks the first quarterly decline since late 2025 and suggests that recent improvements across the sector have begun to lose momentum.
Manufacturing remained the strongest-performing area, rising by 0.6% over the period. However, this growth was outweighed by declines across the other main sectors. Electricity and gas fell by 2.4%, water supply and sewerage decreased by 1.0%, and mining and quarrying dropped by 0.8%.
Eight of the thirteen manufacturing subsectors recorded growth over the quarter. Pharmaceuticals and computer, electronic and optical products provided the largest positive contributions, increasing by 2.2% and 2.9% respectively. These gains were partially offset by weaker performance in machinery and equipment, which fell by 4.0%, and electrical equipment, which declined by 4.4%.
Sector Outlook
While manufacturing continues to show areas of strength, the latest figures highlight ongoing challenges across other parts of the production sector. Energy, utilities and extraction industries all experienced declines during the quarter, limiting overall growth.
The continued expansion in pharmaceuticals and technology-related manufacturing offers some encouragement, but the return to negative quarterly growth suggests that recovery across the wider production sector remains uneven.
Production output was broadly flat in April 2026 and slipped slightly over the three months to April, marking the first quarterly decline since November 2025. Manufacturing continued to provide support, particularly through pharmaceuticals and technology-related industries, but this was not enough to offset weakness across energy, utilities and mining activities.
Source: Index of Production, UK – Office for National Statistics (ONS)
