Northern Ireland’s manufacturing sector has a lower number of firms at a higher than normal risk of insolvency than anywhere else in the UK, according to the latest research from R3 (www.r3.org.uk).

In August, the number was less than one in five (19%) — lower than the UK average of 22.9%.

Taking all business sectors into account, firms in Northern Ireland had the second-lowest overall risk profile, with almost a quarter (24.4%) of all companies deemed at higher than normal risk, compared to the UK average of 28.2%.

However, the local figure is 2.7% higher than it was in January, reflecting a general trend towards a higher rate of insolvency risk across all parts of the UK since the start of the year.

Stephen Cave, chairman of R3 in Northern Ireland, said: “Despite continuing political uncertainty in Northern Ireland, the latest figures are an encouraging sign that the economy has remained resilient, with manufacturing-sector risk levels only slightly higher than earlier this year.”

Manufacturing exports total about £6 billion per year and make up almost two thirds of Northern Ireland’s export sales.