Britain’s lopsided recovery continues

Hopes that Britain’s economic recovery will become less reliant on big-spending consumers ebbed further yesterday as data showed manufacturing growth weakened at the end of last year while lending to individuals soared.

Sterling hit a 16-month low after the Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index, a closely watched monthly business survey, hit a three-month low in December.

Separate data from the Bank of England showed lending to consumers surged at its fastest rate in nearly a decade in the three months to November, and business lending showed signs of picking up despite a slowing housing market.