In February, the UK economy experienced a 0.5% growth in GDP, rebounding from a previous dip in January. All three major sectors, including services, manufacturing, and construction, showed positive activity. Notably, manufacturing surged by 1.5% month-on-month, contributing importantly to the growth. However, as noted by Nicholas Hyett, the underlying data may seem outdated in the context of recent global trade disruptions and cost increases from national policy changes. Despite these challenges, February's results present a surprisingly robust snapshot of economic health at that time.
GDP data often feels a bit dated by the time it's published - the Trump shaped asteroid that hit markets in the last week means February's data feels practically pre-historic.
The picture it paints is a rosy one, as output grew across all three major sectors.
Overall growth of 0.5% in a month is genuinely impressive, far faster than either the market or we had expected.
Higher living wage and national insurance expenses kicked in in April, though these numbers suggest they may not have been the headwind to growth we had anticipated.
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