§ Mr. Sillarsasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the latest index of industrial production; how it compares with each of the past four years; and how it compares with period of the three-day week in February 1974.
§ Mr. Denzil DaviesThe latest available information relates to January 1978 when the provisional seasonally adjusted all-industries index was 102.9. Comparable figures for each of the past four years are given in the table below:
INDEX OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION (1970=100) Total of all industries 1974 … … … … 106.3 1975 … … … … 100.6 1976 … … … … 101.4 1977 … … … 102.4 The value of the index in February 1974 was 103.2. But some of the series used in compiling the index measure deliveries or sales rather than production and this may lead to some overstatement of the level of output at a time when industry is drawing on stocks of finished goods, as it was during the time of disruption of production in February 1974.