British Trade Group: Manufacturing Job Losses ‘Accelerated’ Last Quarter

Manufacturing Malaise: A manufacturers trade group in Great Britain wants the government to take more aggressive action to cut interest rates, saying it could help stave off massive job loss related to a projected “sustained downturn.” The Engineering Employers Federation is urging the Bank of England to cut interest rates by a full percentage point. The group paints a gloomy picture for the manufacturing sector amid a worsening overall economy, with 2009 conditions “set to be some of the toughest” in the last two decades. The trade group surveyed more than 800 firms for its fourth-quarter business trends survey and 2009 economic forecast. Weaker activity is widespread, with all nine of the country’s sectors reporting a slowdown in new orders, the group says. The inability to get financing and investment is affecting employment, as the “pace of job losses accelerated in the last three months.”