Centre for Industry & Government

Economics research

All of the activities that make up manufacturing, from R&D through production and on to service provision, are increasingly moving around the world. A 2003 survey indicated that over 30% of companies in Western Europe have no production capability in their home markets. At the same time, as currently measured, manufacturing continues to decline as a proportion of gross domestic product in many economies.

What impact are these changes likely to have and how should companies and governments be responding? By understanding how manufacturing is evolving from a firm perspective, we aim to be able to help decision-makers in companies and in government on issues of support and development in manufacturing.

Research themes

• How is manufacturing evolving and what are the implications for how it is described and analysed by economists?
• Is it important for a country’s economic growth to have a manufacturing base?
• What impact does the globalization of production have on specific economies?
• When is it strategically important for companies to retain control of production?

Resources

The following links provide access to data on manufacturing, and further links on key readings in this area will be added soon.

Data

Data (up to 2006 - more recent data will available in September 2009) on manufacturing in the UK and other economies are provided here, with links to the original data sources.

Readings

Key readings on thinking about the evolution of manufacturing and the changes in economies around the world will be added soon.