- ORIGINAL NEWS
UK economy posts 0.1% growth in February in further sign of recession rebound
- SUMMARY
The U.K. economy has shown signs of recovery in recent months, emerging from a technical recession.
In February, GDP (Gross Domestic Product) rose by a modest 0.1%, providing cautious optimism about the economy’s future.
This growth follows a 0.3% increase in January, which was initially reported as 0.2% but has since been revised upwards.
The growth in February was primarily driven by production output, which saw a significant rise of 1.1%.
However, construction output fell by 1.9%, indicating a slowdown in that sector.
The services sector, which constitutes the largest portion of the U.K. economy, also experienced a slower growth of 0.1% compared to 0.3% in January.
The monthly GDP figures suggest that the U.K. economy is gradually recovering, although growth remains sluggish.
While this marks the end of the technical recession, economists caution that the economic outlook is not entirely positive.
Inflation, which had been declining in recent months, has slightly rebounded.
Additionally, the U.K. economy is facing headwinds from global factors such as the ongoing war in Ukraine and the potential for a U.S. recession.
As a result, the Bank of England (BOE) is expected to tread cautiously in its monetary policy and is unlikely to cut interest rates as aggressively as the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Overall, the U.K. economy is improving but continues to face challenges that could temper its growth in the coming months.
- NEWS SENTIMENT CHECK
- Overall sentiment:
neutral
Positive
“The U.K. economy grew 0.1% in February, the Office for National Statistics said Friday.”
“January recorded light growth, which was revised upward to 0.3% on Friday.”
Negative
“Gross domestic product fell in the third and fourth quarters of 2023.”
“Instead, production output was the biggest contributor to the GDP, rising by 1.1% in February, while growth in the U.K.’s dominant services sector slowed to 0.1% from 0.3%.”