British industrial output grew more strongly than expected in September as it bounced back from a fall the previous month.
The data provided some reassurance that the country's economic recovery is not being driven only by consumption.
Output in the industrial sector - which makes up about a sixth of Britain's economy - climbed 0.9% during the month and was pushed up most strongly by manufacturing, the Office for National Statistics said.
Economists had expected a rise of 0.5%, according to a Reuters poll of economists.
They cautioned against reading too much into the figures, adding that Britain's economy was still being driven by consumption and the services sector.
Growth in industrial output over the three months to September slowed to 0.6%, which meant there was no change to the estimate of Britain's overall economic growth of 0.8% between July and September.
Britain's economy has staged a surprisingly strong recovery in 2013 after struggling to get over the financial crisis. But it has depended largely on consumer spending which has bee nbuoyed by a recovery in the housing market.
A survey by mortgage lender Halifax published earlier today showed British house prices in the three months to October were 6.9% higher than a year earlier.
The Bank of England meets today and tomorrow and is not expected to change policy, having said it will keep interest rates at their record low until unemployment falls to 7%.
Economists expect the bank to bring forward its expectationfor when that will happen - currently late 2016 - when it publishes new forecasts next week.
Compared with a year earlier, industrial output in September was 2.2% higher, the strongest annual growth since January 2011, helped by a rebound in oil and gas after maintenance work hit output last year.
The narrower category of manufacturing rose by 1.2 %,compared with forecasts for a 1.1% rise.
A survey of purchasing managers last week suggested Britain's manufacturing sector was enjoying its fastest growth in export orders in more than two years but was still expanding more slowly than the construction and services sectors.
