UK Factory activity slowed down in January after a strong increase in performance over the previous months, at the same time January saw an increase in the number of new orders.

While UK manufacturing experienced a slowdown according to the latest figures in Markit's UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), the PMI of 56.7 still represents strong growth, with the start of the year seeing increased orders from domestic and overseas buyers.

An export orders index figure of 57.5 for January is the highest level seen since February 2011.

Rob Dobson, senior economist at PMI compiler Markit, said: “Although the pace of output expansion has cooled slightly in recent months, growth is still tracking at one of the highest rates in the 22-year survey history".

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