<ul><li>Prior -2</li></ul><p style=““ class=“text-align-justify“>The net order book balance among UK manufacturers fell by less than expected with expectations of price rises in the next three months also seen falling from +59 in September to +46 this month – that is the lowest since September last year. It is a positive development but overall sentiment remains gloomy with business optimism in Q4 (-48) sliding to its lowest since April 2020. CBI notes that:</p><p style=““ class=“text-align-justify“>“It’s a tough time for manufacturers. Price pressures remain acute, availability of raw materials is still a big issue.</p><p style=““ class=“text-align-justify“>“It is 49 years since manufacturing firms were this worried about being able to find workers with the skills they need. It’s really no surprise that sentiment has deteriorated further.“</p><p>/<a target=“_blank“ href=“https://www.forexlive.com/terms/g/gbp/“ target=“_blank“ id=“3a5ab7c1-ff09-45ea-87d4-eea6613bb754_1″ class=“terms__main-term“>GBP</a></p>

This article was written by Justin Low at forexlive.com.