U.K. Industrial Production Eases Unexpectedly In January

Industrial production in the U.K. fell unexpectedly by 0.4% in January from the prior month, a report from the Office for National Statistics showed Wednesday. Economists were expecting a 0.3% monthly growth for January after recording 0.5% increase in December.

Annually, the index of production fell 1.5% in January, smaller than December's 3.7% decrease. But the decline was larger than the expected 0.8% drop.

Monthly fall in manufacturing output was 0.9% in January. That compared to a 0.9% rise in December. Consensus forecast was for 0.2% increase. Meanwhile, manufacturing output rose 0.2% from the previous year. Economists were looking for 1.4% growth.

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