LONDON (Reuters) - More British manufacturers are optimistic about their growth prospects over the next three months than at any time since the early days of the financial crisis, a survey showed on Monday.
Manufacturers are confident about investment and hiring, with positive output reported across all sectors, according to a quarterly outlook from industry group EEF and accountants BDO.
Growth over the last three months was driven largely by domestic demand because export orders did not materialise as hoped earlier this year, the report showed.
It cited weaker-than-expected conditions in the United States and the euro zone, as well as the strength of the pound.
A balance of 34 percent of manufacturers expected an improvement in output growth in the next three months, the highest since the third quarter of 2007 and up slightly from the previous survey.
"This should help sustain broad-based growth across the UK," said Lee Hopley, chief economist at the EEF.
Respondents in the survey upgraded their outlook for manufacturing output growth in 2014 to 3.6 percent from 2.7 percent in the last report carried out three months ago.
Manufacturing output remains around 8 percent below its pre-recession peak as of the first quarter of this year.
(Reporting by Andy Bruce; Editing by William Schomberg/Mark Heinrich)