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UK economy grew 0.7% in first quarter of the year - YAHOO FINANCE
The UK's economy expanded 0.7% in the first three months of the year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, confirming a preliminary estimate.
The ONS said output grew by 0.7% in the services sector, while production also increased, by 1.3%, and the construction sector grew by 0.3>#/p###
The statistics body said that while the quarterly figure was unrevised, monthly growth was higher than first thought in March, at 0.4% compared with the initial estimate of 0.2%.
January saw zero growth and February saw expansion of 0.5%, both unrevised.
The household saving ratio, a measure of how much people save, fell for the first time in two years, to 10.9% from 12%, as people spent more on fuel, rent and restaurant meals.
Liz McKeown, ONS director of economic statistics, said: “While overall quarterly growth was unrevised, our updated set of figures show the economy still grew strongly in February, with growth now coming in a little higher in March too.
“There was broad-based growth across services, while manufacturing also had a strong quarter.
“The saving ratio fell for the first time in two years this quarter, as rising costs for items such as fuel, rent and restaurant meals contributed to higher spending, although it remains relatively strong.”
The first-quarter growth figure marks the highest GDP growth rate since the first quarter of 2024, when the economy jumped by 0.9%.
“The UK economy roared back to life in the first quarter after stagnating through the second half of last year,” said analysts at ING in a note.
“Is this a Trump effect? Maybe a bit. Manufacturing was up by 0.8% in the first three months of the year, and we know that transport equipment — the major export to the US — drove the bulk of that growth.”
However, the latest ONS data shows gross domestic product dropped by 0.3% in April on a monthly basis, a more substantial contraction than the 0.1% drop widely expected.
The OECD slightly lowered its forecasts for UK GDP growth in 2025 to 1.3% from 1.4% and downgraded 2026 forecasts to 1.0% from 1.2>#/p###
