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The UK’s economy grew by 0.6% between April and June as it continued its recovery from the recession at the end of last year.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show gross domestic product (GDP) continued to grow in the second quarter, after growth of 0.7% in the first three months of 2024. GDP is the measure of everything produced in the UK.
Growth was led by the services sector, in particular the IT industry, legal services and scientific research.
Services were the biggest contributor to the UK’s economy, rising by 0.8%, far outstripping manufacturing and construction, both of which saw an output fall of 0.1% between April and June.
Liz McKeown, the ONS director of economic statistics, said: “The UK economy has now grown strongly for two quarters, following the weakness we saw in the second half of last year.
“Growth across the three months was led by the service sector, where scientific research, the IT industry and legal services all did well.”
Read more: Possibility of multiple Bank of England interest rate cuts rises on jobs and inflation data
But there was no growth at all in June, the Office for National Statistics said, as businesses delayed purchases until after the general election.
“In a range of industries across the economy, businesses stated that customers were delaying placing orders until the outcome of the election was known,” the ONS said.
Strikes were also identified as a reason for the flatline. At the time junior doctors were still striking.
Compared to a year earlier, real GDP is estimated to have climbed 0.9%, according to the ONS.
Neil Birrell, CIO at Premier Miton Investors, said: “The second quarter seems like a long time ago, but the GDP data confirms that the UK economy is in good health.
“The Bank of England is in the nice position, unlike other central banks, of having a level of surety in the data it is seeing, when setting policy. With inflation playing ball as well, the path to lower interest rates looks to be set, the timing of the cuts is now the focus.”
Read more: What is a technical recession and what does it mean for me?
Last year, the UK economy fell into a shallow and short-lived recession. A recession is defined as economic activity shrinking for two three-month periods — or quarters — in a row.
Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG UK, said Britain’s economy enjoyed “another gangbusters quarter”.
“After robust growth in May, a weaker June was expected, with weaker retail trade accounting for the main part of the overall slowdown in services.
“On the other hand, both the construction and manufacturing sectors showed positive growth in June despite seeing an overall decline in the quarter.
“While growth in the second half of the year is expected to slow, overall growth for 2024 could reach 1.1%, well above expectations at the start of the year.”
Read more: UK inflation rises to 2.2% in first increase this year
Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who did not comment the latest inflation figures that showed a rise in prices, said: “The new government is under no illusion as to the scale of the challenge we have inherited after more than a decade of low economic growth and a £22bn black hole in the public finances.
“That is why we have made economic growth our national mission and we are taking the tough decisions now to fix the foundations, so we can rebuild Britain and make every part of the country better off.”
In the first week after Labour’s election win, the chancellor promised to reboot the economy by making it the new government’s “national mission” to secure the highest sustained growth in the G7.
Today’s figures mean the economy continued to outperform France, Germany and Italy in the second quarter. However, the United States is the G7’s number one economy, which grew by 0.7%.
Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, shrank 0.1% in the three months to June, while the French economy expanded 0.3%c and Italy grew by 0.2%.
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