UK manufacturers cut jobs and expect more losses ahead

Manufacturing job numbers dropped across the UK in the three months to July, according to the CBI’s latest business survey — and the sector expects that trend to continue. The CBI, which represents around 170,000 UK businesses, posted the findings on its official account, stating that manufacturers anticipate another fall in employment in the three months to October. The survey does not provide specific figures for the size of those falls, so the scale of the decline remains unquantified.

The CBI data sits alongside broader ONS labour market figures that paint a similar picture. The figures show payrolled employees across the whole UK economy fell by around 66,000 — 0.2 per cent — over the quarter to July 2025, and by around 110,000 — 0.4 per cent — over the year. Job vacancies fell by around 44,000, or 5.8 per cent, on the quarter to reach about 718,000 in the May to July 2025 period, compared with higher levels earlier in the year.

For Kent, the picture is worth watching closely. The county has manufacturing activity across food processing, engineering, pharmaceuticals and construction materials, and its position near the Port of Dover and Channel Tunnel means many local firms are tied to export markets and national supply chains — both of which are sensitive to the kind of demand weakness the CBI survey flags. Reduced manufacturing employment nationally can also soften demand for related local services, including logistics, warehousing and commercial property.

Workers in Kent’s manufacturing sector may face greater competition for vacancies if employers slow or freeze hiring, and those on temporary contracts or overtime arrangements could feel pressure first.

CBI surveys are qualitative — they measure the balance of firms expecting increases against those expecting decreases — rather than tracking exact headcounts. But they are a long-running series used by policymakers and economists as an early indicator of shifts in employment before official ONS data catch up. Whether the expected October fall materialises at the scale manufacturers fear will become clearer when the next set of ONS labour market statistics are published.