§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment he has made of the effect of the Government's monetary and exchange rate policies since 1979 on the rate of return in manufacturing industry. [29441]
§ Mr. NeedhamThe net rate of return on capital employed by manufacturing companies rose from 3.3 per cent. in 1979 to 5.8 per cent. in 1993. This reflects an underlying improvement in the performance of manufacturing industry.