The British economy grew by 0.6% in the second quarter of the year, continuing the country’s cautious recovery from recession, the Office for National Statistics said on Thursday.
The figure was in line with expectations of economists interviewed by Reuters and follows growth of 0.7 percent in the first quarter.
Economic growth was steady in June, in line with a Reuters poll, with activity in the UK’s dominant services sector falling 0.1%. Manufacturing and construction output rose 0.5% and 0.8% respectively in the month.
The UK economy has seen modest but steady growth almost every month this year, as the UK emerges from a mild recession. GDP remained steady even in April, when wet weather slowed retail sales and construction output.
On an annual basis, the economy grew by 0.9% in the second quarter, compared to an expected growth of 0.8%.
“These data confirm that the UK’s recovery from recession gathered momentum in the second quarter, although strikes and wet weather kept activity flat in June,” said Suren Thiru, director of economics at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
“The UK’s strong performance in Q2 was due more to the temporary momentum generated by recent large declines in inflation and increased consumer spending resulting from events such as Euro 2024 than to a significant improvement in the UK’s underlying growth trajectory,” Thiru added.
The growth pace is unlikely to continue in the second half, Thiroux added, due to weak wage growth, rising interest rates and supply challenges..
This is breaking news and will be updated soon.
“Entrepreneur. Social media ninja. Music nerd. Award-winning introvert. Beer trailblazer.”
