But growth remains 5.9% below pre-pandemic peak and GDP falls 1.5% in first quarter
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.
The UK economy declined by 1.5% in the three months to March (when the country was in lockdown) from the previous quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics. This is not as bad as the 1.7% drop forecast by City economists.
While latest data confirms the economy was hit once again by a renewed lockdown at the turn of the year, the fall in activity was much smaller compared with spring 2020. Households and businesses have clearly adapted better to working and living under Covid restrictions, despite the brutal cost of doing so.
A range of indicators, including CBI business surveys, point to a rebound in activity heading into summer – with the economy opening up and pent-up demand waiting to be unleashed. But this is a recovery that will be felt more by some. Undoubtedly, hardest-hit sectors and households have a longer road ahead.
GDP grew 2.1% in March but remains 5.9% below its pre-pandemic peak.
Services grew 1.9% (7.2% below), manufacturing grew 2.1% (2.2% below) and construction grew 5.8% (2.4% above) https://t.co/FIpL48Qtxt pic.twitter.com/v1YqGiDNBV
#UK #economy contracted in first quarter of 2021 for first time since second quarter of 2020 but #GDP decline of 1.5% quarter-on-quarter was a pretty resilient performance amid #lockdown & much less than had been feared at start of quarter. GDP grew 2.1% month-on-month in March
