A method for closing a knitted tubular manufacture at an axial end thereof, comprising:—producing the manufacture up to execution of the last course of knitting;—gripping the loops;—removing the manufacture, retaining each loop of the last course formed;—positioning the manufacture at a sewing station;—transitioning the loops from pickup elements to spikes of a handling device;—inverting the manufacture retained by the handling device;—superimposing each one of the loops of one half course of knitting on a corresponding loop of the other half course of the last course of knitting;—sewing pairs of loops of knitting that are mutually superimposed;—disengaging the manufacture from the handling device, the s removal step of the manufacture comprising a first extraction preparation step, a second manufacture extraction step, and a third manufacture transfer step.