UK Manufacturers More Hopeful About Economy

"This is important as it suggests the growth may be sustainable rather than a short term blip," Noble said.

Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit Economics, which gathered the survey data, also urged caution.

"Job losses are still running at a fast rate and cost pressures are starting to re-emerge," Dobson said.

"Official data show that manufacturing employment is at its lowest level since comparable records began and output is at its mid-1992 level," Dobson said, adding that the road to recovery "is likely to be long and uncertain."

Britain's economy shrank by 0.4 percent in the third quarter, according to the preliminary calculation by the Office for National Statistics, confounding widespread expectations that the economy might return to growth during the period.

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