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UK economy was a bit bigger than thought at end of 2023

Britain's economy at the end of 2023 is now estimated to have been 2.2% bigger than its peak immediately before the coronavirus pandemic, up slightly from a previous estimate of 1.9%, the Office for National Statistics said today.

Business • 19 Aug

The green UK job centre plus sign outside an office

UK hiring falls but wage growth stays high

Britain's jobs market has weakened again, official data showed, with payrolls falling for a sixth month and vacancies dropping further, but wage growth stayed strong, underscoring why the Bank of England is so cautious about cutting interest rates.

Business • 12 Aug

The ONS has paused publication of its factory gate inflation figures and similar data for the services sector after finding a methodology problem

UK statistics office hit by new data problem

Britain's statistics office, which is under fire for its unreliable labour market data, said it had paused publication of its factory gate inflation figures and similar data for the services sector after finding a methodology problem.

Business • 21 Mar

The UK's economy unexpectedly fell by 0.1% in January compared with December

UK economy sputters in January, underlining challenges

Britain's economy contracted unexpectedly in January, extending a run of stop-start data that has beset finance minister Rachel Reeves' attempts to spark growth, before an update to parliament on the economic outlook.

Business • 14 Mar

New ONS figures show that British retail sales fell by 0.7% in October - a much bigger drop than had been expected

UK retail sales fall by more than expected in October

British retail sales fell by much more than expected in October, dropping by 0.7% from September, according to official data that added to other signs of a loss of momentum in the economy early in the term of Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Business • 22 Nov 24

The average property value in the UK is £292,000, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said today

Annual UK house price growth accelerates to 2.9% - ONS

Annual house price growth in the UK accelerated to 2.9% in September, according to official figures.

Business • 20 Nov 24

Sterling rose against the US dollar immediately after the data was published.

UK regular pay rises by annual 5.4% in 3 months to June

British average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, were 5.4% higher than a year earlier in the three months to the end of June, the Office for National Statistics said today.

Business • 13 Aug 24

The UK economy contracted by 0.1% in the third quarter of 2023, new ONS figures show today

UK recession may be under way as economy shrinks in Q3

Britain's economy might be in a recession, according to data that showed it shrank between July and September, shortly after finance minister Jeremy Hunt took the rare step of suggesting the Bank of England might cut interest rates to boost growth.

Business • 22 Dec 23

The UK's GDP in the second quarter of 2023 was 0.2% higher than the quarter before, new ONS figures show

UK growth revised up to show faster post-Covid recovery

British gross domestic product in the second quarter of 2023 was 0.2% higher than the quarter before, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed today.

Business • 29 Sep 23

July saw a bigger than expected GDP contraction of 0.5% in July

UK economy stumbles in July as strikes and rain weigh

Britain's economy contracted in July at an unexpectedly sharp rate after strikes in hospitals and schools as well as unusually rainy weather weighed on output, according to official figures on Wednesday that will add to worries about the outlook.

Business • 13 Sep 23

UK jobless levels rose to 4.3% in the three months to July from 4.2% in the previous three month period

UK labour market softens in July, despite wage growth

Another record month for British pay growth put the Bank of England on track to raise interest rates once again, perhaps for the last time in the current cycle, as data today also pointed to a cooling labour market.

Business • 12 Sep 23

British economic output fell by 0.1% in May compared to April

UK economy hit by extra bank holiday in May - ONS

Britain's economy contracted by less than expected in May when there was an extra bank holiday to mark the coronation of King Charles, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed today.

Business • 13 Jul 23

The UK unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.7% in the three months to October, new figures show today

UK unemployment rate rises again to hit 3.7%

Britain's unemployment rate rose for a second month in a row and there were other signs of a cooling labour market in data published today, including an increase in older people saying they were looking for work.

Business • 13 Dec 22

UK inflation fell to 9.9% in August from 10.1% in July

UK inflation falls for first time in nearly a year

Britain's annual rate of consumer price inflation fell to 9.9% in August, down from 10.1% in July, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday.

Business • 14 Sep 22

The UK's jobless rate fell to 3.6% in the three months to July, new ONS figures show

UK jobless rate hits lowest since 1974

Britain's unemployment rate fell to its lowest since 1974 at 3.6% in the three months to July as more people left the labour market including those classified as long-term sick as well as students, official monthly figures showed today.

Business • 13 Sep 22

The UK's GDP fell by 11% in 2020 - a bigger drop than any of the ONS's previous estimates and the largest fall since 1709

UK economy shrank a record 11% in 2020

Britain recorded its biggest fall in output in more than 300 years in 2020 when it faced the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as a larger decline than any other major economy, updated official figures showed today.

Business • 22 Aug 22

UK retail sales have fallen by 1.2% in the three months to July

UK retail sales rise in July - ONS data

UK retail sales picked up in July but continued to show longer-term signs that consumers are making cutbacks to save money amid soaring inflation, according to official figures.

Business • 19 Aug 22

UK consumer price inflation hit an annual rate of 9% in April, new figures show

UK inflation hits 40-year high of 9% in April

British consumer price inflation hit an annual rate of 9% in April, the highest since official estimates began in the late 1980s, data showed today.

Business • 18 May 22

The UK imported £222 billion worth of goods from the European Union last year after Brexit - the lowest figure in more than half a decade

UK's non-EU imports overtook trade with block last year

The UK's imports from non-EU countries overtook those from the bloc last year for the first time since records began.

Business • 11 Feb 22

The UK economy grew by a weaker than expected 0.1% in October, new figures show today

UK economy barely grew in October, GDP up by 0.1%

Britain's economy grew by a weaker than expected 0.1% in October, leaving it 0.5% smaller than it was in February 2020, just before the country went into its first Covid-19 lockdown, the Office for National Statistics said today.

Business • 10 Dec 21

The 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme was the biggest factor behind the rise in UK inflation this year

UK inflation rockets to 3.2% in biggest jump on record

British inflation hit a more than nine-year high last month after the biggest monthly jump in the annual rate in at least 24 years, official data showed today.

Business • 15 Sep 21

UK GDP fell by 2.2% in the first quarter, the largest fall since 1979

UK GDP shows biggest drop since 1979 in first quarter

The UK economy saw its biggest contraction since 1979 in early 2020 as households slashed their spending, according to official data that included the first few days of the coronavirus lockdown.

Business • 30 Jun 20

UK government budget forecasters last week said unemployment could rise as high as 10% due to Covid-19

UK employment growth slowed in March as Covid-19 hits

The number of people in jobs in Britain grew more slowly in March than in February, official figures showed today in an early sign of the impact of the coronavirus shutdown which is expected to hammer the jobs market.

Business • 21 Apr 20

British consumer prices rose at their highest rate in six months during January

British inflation rose to 1.8% in January - ONS

The cost of energy and aeroplane tickets pushed household prices higher in Britain in the opening month of 2020, official statisticians have revealed.

Business • 19 Feb 20

The UK jobless rate edged down to 3.8% in the first quarter, its lowest since the three months to January 1975

UK jobless rate falls as employers hire ahead of Brexit

The UK unemployment rate fell to its lowest since the mid-1970s in early 2019 as employers hired in the run-up to the original date for Britain's EU departure.

Business • 14 May 19

Office For National Statistics