UK industrial expansion in March fails to change picture of underlying weakness

UK industrial production showed some encouraging signs of growth in March, which will be widely seen as upping the odds of interest rates rising later this year. But the overall picture in fact remains one of a manufacturing economy that is struggling to expand in the face of the stronger pound and heightened business uncertainty. The near-stagnation of the sector over the first quarter is a reminder of how little progress the UK has made in terms of rebalancing towards manufacturing and will probably do little to persuade the Bank of England that the economy is ready for higher interest rates