Stoking recovery hopes for the battered sector, British manufacturing output climbed 1.7% in September from the previous month, after a downwardly revised 2% drop in August, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
The September increase was the strongest monthly performance since July 2002 when the measure rose by 4.3%.
However, manufacturing output during September on a 12-month basis sank 9.3%, the ONS added on Nov. 5.
The ONS added that a wider measure of industrial production, which includes mining, quarrying and energy, rose 1.6% in September from August and was down 10.3% year-on-year.
"The 1.7% rise in output between August and September shows glimmers of an industrial recovery," said Graeme Allinson, head of manufacturing, transport and logistics at Barclays.
The data comes one week after news that the British economy unexpectedly shrank by 0.4% in the third quarter of 2009, extending a deep recession.
"Over the past two or three months we've noticed innovative UK manufacturers are capitalizing on the increase in global demand for consumer durables and capital goods, while the competitiveness of a still weak sterling is continuing to assist exporters," Allinson said.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2009
