Britain's manufacturing sector fell back in November following recent signs of recovery.
The Office for National Statistics said output dropped by 0.7% compared with October, the first fall in production since August and the sharpest drop since October 2002.
Economists had expected a slight rise, in line with improving evidence from surveys on the sector. The monthly figure left output just 0.7% ahead of November 2002.
A breakdown showed that nine of the 13 manufacturing sector recorded monthly falls, with computer output down 6.5%.
A wider measure of industrial production, which includes North Sea oil and gas output, fell 1% in November to give an annual drop of 0.4%.
