Production and total new orders both expanded at the weakest rates for four months, while export sales increased only marginally.

The headline Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) - a composite indicator designed to provide a singlefigure snapshot of operating conditions in the manufacturing economy - posted 51.0 in March, down from 51.6 in February. Although the reading signalled a further improvement in the health of the sector, the latest upturn was only slight and the weakest recorded since last November.