Official data released on Friday showed that the UK economy contracted by 2.9 percent in January compared to December, which is better than expected in a month that saw the country return to lockdown due to the Coronavirus.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected a contraction of 4.9 percent.
The bank said the UK economy is likely to contract by 4% in the first quarter of 2021, mainly due to the recent shutdown, but also due to disruption caused by the new post-Brexit rules for trade with the European Union. Month.
“The economy suffered a noticeable impact in January, although less than expected, with the deterioration in retail trade, restaurants, schools, hairdressers, and businesses affected by the recent shutdown,” said Jonathan Atho, a statistician at the British National Bureau of Statistics.
“The manufacturing sector also saw its first decline since April with a significant drop in auto manufacturing. However, increases in health services from vaccine launches and increased testing have partially offset the decline in other industries.”
The British economy contracted by 1.7% in the three months to January, a number better than the median forecast of analysts in a Reuters survey, as it estimated a contraction of 2.5%.
The Office for National Statistics said the economy was 9.2 percent lower than it was in January of last year.
(Information from William Schomburg; edited by Alistair Smoot; translated by Thomas Cobos)
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