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25/08/2004
Oxford plant hits Mini milestone
The new-look Mini celebrated a milestone today as the half-millionth vehicle rolled off the production line in Oxford today.
Since production began at the BMW plant in 2001 more than 375,000 of the 500,000 Minis have been exported, boosting the British manufacturing sector.
Watching the Mini milestone, Andrew Smith, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, said it was a great day not just for the local labour force in Oxford but also for the country as a whole.
"The Mini is just one example of the continuing success of UK manufacturing in the global marketplace. Overall manufacturing output is rising and is close to its highest ever level," he said.
According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), car production rose by 3.2% over the quarter ending in July.
Export car production increased by 7% while production allocated for the home market rose by 2.4%. Compared with the same period a year ago, total car production rose by 2.1%.
Total commercial vehicle production for the three months ending July rose by 0.2% compared with the previous quarter.
ONS figures also found that manufacturing output rose by 0.9% over the quarter, with year-on-year growth topping 1.6%. In addition, the latest data on manufacturing vacancies shows that Jobcentre Plus takes around 250,000 manufacturing vacancies each year with 63,000 in the last quarter.
(gmcg)
Since production began at the BMW plant in 2001 more than 375,000 of the 500,000 Minis have been exported, boosting the British manufacturing sector.
Watching the Mini milestone, Andrew Smith, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, said it was a great day not just for the local labour force in Oxford but also for the country as a whole.
"The Mini is just one example of the continuing success of UK manufacturing in the global marketplace. Overall manufacturing output is rising and is close to its highest ever level," he said.
According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), car production rose by 3.2% over the quarter ending in July.
Export car production increased by 7% while production allocated for the home market rose by 2.4%. Compared with the same period a year ago, total car production rose by 2.1%.
Total commercial vehicle production for the three months ending July rose by 0.2% compared with the previous quarter.
ONS figures also found that manufacturing output rose by 0.9% over the quarter, with year-on-year growth topping 1.6%. In addition, the latest data on manufacturing vacancies shows that Jobcentre Plus takes around 250,000 manufacturing vacancies each year with 63,000 in the last quarter.
(gmcg)
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