• Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Supplier Directory
  • SCB YouTube
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Logout
  • My Profile
  • LOGISTICS
    • Air Cargo
    • All Logistics
    • Express/Small Shipments
    • Facility Location Planning
    • Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
    • Global Gateways
    • Global Logistics
    • Last Mile Delivery
    • Logistics Outsourcing
    • LTL/Truckload Services
    • Ocean Transportation
    • Rail & Intermodal
    • Reverse Logistics
    • Service Parts Management
    • Transportation & Distribution
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • All Technology
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud & On-Demand Systems
    • Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • ERP & Enterprise Systems
    • Forecasting & Demand Planning
    • Global Trade Management
    • Inventory Planning/ Optimization
    • Product Lifecycle Management
    • Sales & Operations Planning
    • SC Finance & Revenue Management
    • SC Planning & Optimization
    • Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
    • Supply Chain Visibility
    • Transportation Management
  • GENERAL SCM
    • Business Strategy Alignment
    • Education & Professional Development
    • Global Supply Chain Management
    • Global Trade & Economics
    • HR & Labor Management
    • Quality & Metrics
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • SC Security & Risk Mgmt
    • Supply Chains in Crisis
    • Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility
  • WAREHOUSING
    • All Warehouse Services
    • Conveyors & Sortation
    • Lift Trucks & AGVs
    • Order Fulfillment
    • Packaging
    • RFID, Barcode, Mobility & Voice
    • Robotics
    • Warehouse Management Systems
  • INDUSTRIES
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Apparel
    • Automotive
    • Chemicals & Energy
    • Consumer Packaged Goods
    • E-Commerce/Omni-Channel
    • Food & Beverage
    • Healthcare
    • High-Tech/Electronics
    • Industrial Manufacturing
    • Pharmaceutical/Biotech
    • Retail
  • THINK TANK
  • WEBINARS
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
  • PODCASTS
  • VIDEOS
  • WHITEPAPERS
Home » U.K. Manufacturers Step Up Stockpiling — Again — Entering Brexit Year

U.K. Manufacturers Step Up Stockpiling — Again — Entering Brexit Year

January 3, 2019
Bloomberg

U.K. manufacturers are intensifying their stockpiling efforts as they brace for a potentially disruptive Brexit.

Factories reported an almost record increase in stocks last month, IHS Markit said in a report Wednesday. New orders also picked up as firms and their clients rushed to protect themselves before the March exit date.

“There is increased concern that the U.K. could leave the EU without a deal next March and this will lead to serious disruptions,” said Howard Archer, chief economic advisor at EY Item Club.

The U.K. is set to leave the European Union on March 29, and reaching an exit agreement before the deadline remains uncertain. Crashing out of the bloc may leave companies facing costly border delays. Jet-engine maker Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc said last month it was stockpiling parts in case of customs checks that could slow component deliveries.

In December, the U.K. government stepped up preparations for a no-deal withdrawal, including asking pharmaceutical companies and supermarkets to stockpile drugs and food, and putting 3,500 troops on standby.

Companies from drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc to cigarette producer Imperial Brands Plc have said they would build inventories ahead of Britain’s exit. Retailers, meanwhile, are urging suppliers to ramp up production on concern their shelves will be depleted if there’s no deal.

For manufacturers, increases in stock holdings and a strong inflow of new orders reflected preparations from both factories and their clients, Markit said. Its Purchasing Managers Index for the industry rose more than forecast to a six-month high in December.

Even with the pick up, the overall picture in the sector remains weak. The average reading for the final three months of the year was the lowest since the third quarter of 2016. Manufacturers’ confidence levels are only slightly above the 27-month low in November, with firms citing Brexit and exchange-rate uncertainty as a weight on the outlook.

Any positive economic impact from the inventory accumulation is likely to be short-lived, according to Samuel Tombs, an economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. Overall growth will likely be below trend in the fourth and first quarters, he said.

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED VIDEOS

Logistics Global Gateways Global Logistics Forecasting & Demand Planning Inventory Planning/ Optimization Sourcing/Procurement/SRM Supply Chain Planning & Optimization Global Supply Chain Management Global Trade & Economics Supply Chain Security & Risk Mgmt Aerospace & Defense Consumer Packaged Goods Food & Beverage Healthcare Industrial Manufacturing Pharmaceutical/Biotech Retail
KEYWORDS Aerospace & Defense consumer packaged goods Europe Food and Beverage Forecasting & Demand Planning Global Gateways Global Logistics Global Supply Chain Management Global Trade & Economics healthcare Industrial Manufacturing Inventory Planning/ Optimization Logistics Pharmaceutical/Biotech Retail SC Planning & Optimization SC Security & Risk Mgmt Sourcing/Procurement/SCM
  • Related Articles

    Drugmakers Stockpiling for Brexit: How Long Do We Wait?

    U.K. Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Will Be Lumped With India, China Upon Brexit

    U.K. Customs Checks Could Cost $1.3Bn a Year Post-Brexit

Bloomberg

Global Oil Trade Shakes Up After Fires at U.S. Fuelmakers

More from this author

Wake up to live
“Supply Chains in Crisis”
updates and the latest Supply Chain News!

Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter

Timely, incisive articles delivered directly to your inbox.

Popular Stories

  • INTERIOR OF A CHICKEN FARM, WITH WHITE CHICKENS AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE

    Worst Avian Flu in U.S. History Is Hitting Poultry

    Food & Beverage
  • TWO FINGERS MANIPULATE WOODEN LETTER BLOCKS TO TURN FROM SHOWING THE WORD RECOVERY TO RESILIENCE

    Five Challenges to Supply Chain Resilience in 2023

    Supply Chain Visibility
  • A PERSON HOLDS UP A TABLET COMPUTER IN A WAREHOUSE, SUPER-IMPOSED BY A GRAPHIC SHOWING A COMPLEX WEB OF SUPPLY CHAIN ELEMENTS

    Three Post-Pandemic Actions for Repairing Global Supply Chains

    Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
  • A MAN IN A SUIT SHAKES HANDS WITH A WOMAN IN A HARD HAT, NEXT TO A STACK OF CONTAINERS

    Three Procurement Technology Evolutions for 2023

    Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
  • The blank stare of a child's eye who is standing behind what appears to be a wooden frame

    The Alarming Continued Rise of Modern Slavery in Supply Chains: How Procurement Can Help Reverse the Trend

    Sourcing/Procurement/SRM

Digital Edition

Scb nov 2022 sm

2022 Supply Chain Innovator of the Year

VIEW THE LATEST ISSUE

Case Studies

  • New Revenue for Cloud-Based TMS that Embeds Orderful’s Modern EDI Platform

  • Convenience Store Client Maximizes Profit and Improves Customer Service

  • A Digitally Native Footwear Brand Finds Rapid Fulfillment

  • Expanding Apparel Brand Scales Seamlessly with E-Commerce Technology

  • How a Global LSP Scaled its Security Program and Won More Business

Visit Our Sponsors

Orderful Yang Ming Alithya
Barcoding Blue Yonder BNSF Logistics
CoEnterprise Data Capture Deposco
E2open GAINSystems Generix
Geodis GEP GreyOrange
Here Honeywell Intelligrated IFM
Infor Inmar Keelvar
Kinaxis Korber Lean Solutions Group 2H
Liberty SBF Locus Robotics Logility
LogistiVIEW Lucas Systems MCA Connect
MPO Nvidia Old Dominion
OpenText ORTEC Overhaul
Parsyl PMMI QIMA
Redwood Logistics Ryder E-commerce by Whiplash Saddle Creek Logistics
Schneider Dedicated Setlog Holding AG Ship4WD
Shipwell Tecsys TGW Systems
Thomson Reuters Tive Trailer Bridge
Vecna Robotics Verity
Verusen
  • More From SCB
    • Featured Content
    • Video Library
    • Think Tank Blog
    • SupplyChainBrain Podcast
    • Whitepapers
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
  • Digital Offerings
    • Digital Issue
    • Subscribe
    • Manage Your Subscription
    • Newsletters
  • Resources
    • Events Calendar
    • SCB's Great Supply Chain Partners
    • Supplier Directory
    • Case Study Showcase
    • Supply Chain Innovation Awards
    • 100 Great Partners Form
  • SCB Corporate
    • Advertise on SCB.COM
    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us
    • Data Sharing Opt-Out

All content copyright ©2023 Keller International Publishing Corp All rights reserved. No reproduction, transmission or display is permitted without the written permissions of Keller International Publishing Corp

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing