Mike Rigby, Head of Manufacturing at Barclays, comments on today's ONS Index of Production figures:
'Although levels of production remain in positive territory, for manufacturers to really get a grip on the throttle, they need easy access to skilled labour which is proving a challenge. With wage inflation increasing and high levels of employment across the UK, the Manufacturing sector should be looking closely at up-skilling staff to meet increased demand.'
About Barclays
Barclays is an international financial services provider engaged in personal, corporate and investment banking, credit cards and wealth management with an extensive presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. Barclays' purpose is to help people achieve their ambitions - in the right way.
With 325 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs over 130,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide.
For further information about Barclays, please visit our website www.barclays.com.
Barclays PLC is one of Britain's leading banking groups. The activity is organized around three sectors:
- commercial banking: at the end of 2023, owned 306 branches worldwide;
- financing, investment, and market banking: specialized financing (acquisitions, projects, etc.), portfolio management, transactions on the stock, interest, exchange, and raw material markets, stock trading, merger-acquisition consulting, investment capital, etc.;
- credit cards issuing.
At the end of 2023, the group managed GBP 538.8 billion in current deposits and GBP 399.5 billion in current credits.
Income breaks down geographically as follows: the United Kingdom (52.4%), Europe (9.9%), Americas (32%), Asia (5.4%), Africa and Middle East (0.3%).