ONS News - UK GDP for Q2 2023

[Itsallaguess]

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ONS News - UK GDP for Q2 2023 -

Main points -

• The first quarterly estimate of UK real gross domestic product (GDP) shows that the economy increased by 0.2% in Quarter 2 (Apr to June) 2023.

• Monthly estimates published today (11 August 2023) show that GDP is estimated to have grown by 0.5% in June 2023, after an unrevised fall of 0.1% in May 2023 and growth of 0.2% in April 2023.

• In output terms, the services sector grew by 0.1% on the quarter, driven by increases in information and communication, accommodation and food service activities, and human health and social work activities; elsewhere, the production sector grew by 0.7%, with 1.6% growth in manufacturing.

• In expenditure terms, there was strong growth in household consumption and government consumption, which was partially offset by a fall in international trade flows in the second quarter.

• Compared with the same quarter a year ago, the implied GDP deflator rose by 6.7%, this follows growth of 6.5% in the previous quarter; this largely reflects a fall in the implied price of imports which contributes positively to the implied GDP deflator.

Full ONS document for Q2 2023 UK GDP - https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/bulletins/gdpfirstquarterlyestimateuk/apriltojune2023

From the BBC -

While the headline figure is for the second quarter - that is, a three-month period - the ONS also releases monthly figures.

In June, the UK's GDP grew by 0.5% overall.

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A range of businesses said the lack of bank holiday in June, compared to May, helped the economy grow, according to the ONS.

In total, there were three bank holidays in the UK in May - including one more than normal, for the King's coronation.

"The economy bounced back from the effects of May's extra bank holiday to record strong growth in June," ONS director of economic statistics Darren Morgan said.

"Manufacturing saw a particularly strong month with both cars and the often-erratic pharmaceutical industry seeing particularly buoyant growth."

BBC live news article on the above Q2 GDP figures -

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/business-66469579

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

[Itsallaguess]

Some more details on these Q2 UK GDP figures from the BBC -

Service sector growth slower than manufacturing or construction -

The ONS also provides data on how individual areas of the UK's economy are faring.

These figures are complex, but the headlines are the UK's production sector (which includes industries like pharmaceuticals, farming and mining) performed best by growing by 1.8% in June.

This was mainly driven by a 2.4% expansion in the manufacturing sector, indicating the cost of materials being used to make products is falling, the ONS says.

The biggest contribution came from the car industry, with strong performance in the production of vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers.

The construction sector grew by 1.6% in June, with both new and maintenance work expanding overall.

The news for the UK's services sector (which includes areas like IT, estate agents and transport) was less positive, with 0.2% growth between April to June.

Services make up just under 80% of the overall UK economy, so they have a larger influence on GDP figures - which is a big factor for the overall low growth in the economy.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/business-66469579

Cheers,

Itsallaguess