The UK’s economic growth showed a slight uptick in the year’s second quarter, as reported by official data, fueling optimism that the country might evade a downturn amid increasing interest rates.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose by 0.2% in the period leading up to June, succeeding a 0.1% growth in the earlier quarter.
This progress surpassed the anticipated stagnant growth by experts, primarily due to a robust final month.
Economically, June witnessed a 0.5% growth, as firms recovered from the extended bank holidays in May for the Coronation celebrations. In contrast, there was a decrease of 0.1% in May, after a 0.2% growth in April.
Darren Morgan, the ONS’s economic statistics director, commented, “Following the added bank holiday in May, there was a significant economic rebound in June. Notably, the manufacturing sector thrived, especially in the automobile and unpredictable pharmaceutical sectors.”
This economic growth persists even after the Bank of England’s 14 successive hikes in interest rates, an effort to counter soaring inflation, which remains at 7.9%.
Neil Birrell from Premier Milton’s asset management remarked on the UK economy’s resilience, noting it “consistently outperforms expectations.
