Corporate profits at 18-month high

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Updated:

 

Corporate profitability is at an 18-month high, as manufacturers enjoy a revival and oil producers benefit from high crude prices.

The Office for National Statistics said the net rate of return by private non-financial firms climbed to 11.9% in the third quarter of last year, up from 11.6% in the second. It was the strongest reading since the first quarter of 2009.

For manufacturers, the rate of return rose to 8.7% from 7.5%, while the offshore oil and gas sector saw profitability surge to 44.8% from 39.0% thanks to the surge in oil prices.

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