The latest official data are perhaps not as bad as some headlines suggest, but they do confirm that the UK economy made a poor start to 2025. First, the raw numbers. Monthly GDP fell by 0.1% in January, against the consensus forecast of a 0.1% rise, led by a 0.9% fall in the production sector … Continue reading UK economy on a knife edge
Tag: finance
Is the “booming net zero economy” really a key driver of growth?
On Monday the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit published a report by CBI Economics which generated plenty of uncritical headlines about the “booming net zero economy”. In particular, the report claimed that the total economic value (GVA) generated by the sector grew by 10.1% last year, and that this supported the equivalent of 951,000 full-time … Continue reading Is the “booming net zero economy” really a key driver of growth?
What to make of today’s UK jobs data
Tuesday’s official data on the state of the UK labour market have been interpreted in several conflicting ways, so here is an attempt to cut through the fog. I took two main points from the figures themselves. First, activity in the labour market continues to cool. I would not pay much attention to the headline … Continue reading What to make of today’s UK jobs data
Fourth quarter GDP ‘boost’ is nothing to cheer
The first official figures for UK GDP in the final quarter of last year may not have been quite as bad as expected, but it says a lot that some are keen to trumpet economic growth of just 0.1% as ‘good news' and a much-needed 'boost' for Rachel Reeves. Quarterly growth of at least 0.4% … Continue reading Fourth quarter GDP ‘boost’ is nothing to cheer
Plain-speaking Economics 