Manufacturers have welcomed today's A-Level results showing a rise in the number of young people studying maths and science - but they want more girls to study the subjects.

EEF, the manfacturers' organisation, said there would will be more than two million job opportunities between 2010 and 2020, across many thousands of engineering companies looking for maths and science-based skills.

Verity O’Keefe, EEF employment skills and policy adviser, said: “Industry is crying out for talented young people with the right skills to help fuel the growth we’re now seeing in manufacturing, so the fact more and more young are people studying maths and sciences is good news. Those that do will significantly boost their chances of a successful career in industry.

“The challenge now is to encourage more girls to study Physics and Maths to help close the gender gap and avoid them ruling themselves out of opportunities in engineering. This must be accompanied by a stronger focus on careers advice and work experience in schools to give all young people a better understanding of the valuable jobs within industries such as manufacturing."

The British Chambers of Commerce congratulated students and teachers for an "excellent" set of results but was disappointed at the drop in the number of foreign languages being taken at A Level.

However youth unemployment had risen and "there were far too many young people whose potential is being undermined because they have not been taught the broader skills required to succeed in the workplace - despite the strong desire of employers to hire and train them."

John Wastnage, BCC employment and skills adviser, urged students who did not get the results they wanted not to despair. "Success is not dependent on academic achievement alone, and employers value hard work, a positive attitude, and skills that are relevant to their business," he said.

"Apprenticeships can offer a better route to a highly skilled and well-paid job. But if we are to make a strong attempt to tackle youth unemployment we need to see more careers education in schools, more contact between pupils and businesses via work experience placements and employer visits, and for students to have basic business skills when they leave school.”

The CBI said it was important to tackle "the perception that A-levels and a three-year degree alone is the only route to a good career. The demand for higher, technical skills will far outstrip the numbers going through the traditional university model alone."