- Joe Grice, ONS chief economist
The UK economy slowed sharply last year, but managed to recover modestly in the final quarter of 2015. Britain's gross domestic product rose 2.2% last year, compared with the 2.9% growth in 2014, the Office for National Statistics reported. In the three months though December, the economy grew 0.5%, compared with the third quarter, when economic output increased 0.4%. The UK was the second fastest growing major economy in 2015. Among the G7 nations only the US showing a stronger performance with growth of 2.4%. According to the ONS, trade made a negative contribution to the UK growth in the December quarter. Furthermore, business investment fell in the fourth quarter, signalling a slackening of activity. Business investment in volume terms dropped 2.1% in the fourth quarter. On an annual basis, the measure advanced 4.7%, the largest increase since 2010. The services sector was again the only upward driver of the nation's economic growth. The Index of Services rose 0.7% in the reported period.
In January, Chancellor George Osborne said that the UK economy was facing a "dangerous cocktail" of risks this year, ranging from slowing economic growth to volatile equity markets and the ongoing plunge in oil prices. The IMF said that the economic performance of the UK had been "strong", but warned that the referendum on EU membership[ was a "risk and uncertainty".
© Dukascopy Bank SA