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Manufacturing industry of the United Kingdom has been declining dramatically over the last several decades.In its heyday during the 19th century，the British manufacturing sector was so advanced in relative terms that it produced a large proportion of everything that was manufactured in the world，earning the country the title“the workshop of the world”.The slump has mainly been caused by the strength of the British pound against other currencies，which makes British exports more expensive，and the rise of new manufacturing countries in Asia and other parts of the world where labor costs are much lower.

Yet certain manufacturing sectors have managed to keep growing，especially the automobile industry and pharmaceuticals.The United Kingdom produces over a million cars a year，about one third of which are for export.However，many of the automobile factories are owned by foreign companies such as Ford，GM，Nissan and Toyota.

In pharmaceuticals，Great Britain remains one of the leading centers of production in the world.The country also dominates the production of certain chemical products，especially paint，and the British chemical company ICI is the largest manufacturer in the country.The British aircraft manufacturing industry ranks 3rd in the world.

As regards the textile industry，Great Britain’s biggest producer of both woolen cloth and cotton cloth.But today its textile industry has shrunk to about one⁃third of its size 20 years ago as a result of fierce international competition.

The energy industry of the United Kingdom as a whole accounted for 4.4％ of the national’s Gross Domestic Product as of 2011.The country’s oil industry is relatively new.Oilfields were discovered in the North Sea in 1969 and developed over the course of the following decades.Today，the country is not only self⁃sufficient in terms of oil supplies，but has also become an oil exporter.In addition，the technology that British companies developed to extract oil and gas from the difficult conditions in the North Sea has given them a strong position in the global offshore oil industry.The United Kingdom now ranks 23rd among the leading oil producing countries in the world，and the price of Brent crude oil from the North Sea is used as a benchmark price for oil on global commodity markets.

Another major source of energy for Great Britain is nuclear power.The country is a world leader in nuclear energy，and has a total of 16 reactors generating about 18％of its electricity.

As far as metallic minerals are concerned，the United Kingdom is a resource⁃deficient country.It has to rely on imports to satisfy the needs of domestic industry.However，it has abundant energy resources in the form of coal and oil.The coal mining industry not only provides tens of thousands of job opportunities to the nation，but also accounts for about a quarter of the energy consumed in the country.Most of the coalfields are located in Central Scotland，Central England and South Wales，particularly around such big cities as Glasgow，Manchester，Sheffield，and Newcastle（this is the source of the idiom“carrying coal to Newcastle，”which means to do something unnecessary or redundant）.