The Bank of England has been urged to hold interest rates and to move cautiously in the coming months amid evidence that growth in manufacturing slowed in the first quarter of 2005. The quarterly survey published by the manufacturers' organisation EEF showed that output and orders had fallen back since the turn of the year, with growth at its slowest pace since the fourth quarter of 2003. This was in line with the forward-looking trends from the previous survey which showed a marked drop in confidence.
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