Written by Andy Bruce and David Milliken
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain posted unexpected growth in the second quarter, supported by strong results in June, official data released on Friday showed, but it remains the only major developed economy yet to recover from its pre-COVID-19 level.
The economy rose 0.2 percent in the second quarter against a consensus of a flat reading in a Reuters poll of economists.
A monthly growth of 0.5 percent in June contributed to this, exceeding all expectations in a Reuters poll, which indicated a rebound of 0.2 percent.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) noted that businesses cited an additional national holiday in May as a factor for the increase in production in June, compared to May.
“The measures we are taking to combat inflation are starting to take effect, which means we are laying the strong foundations needed to grow the economy,” Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt said, as the pound rose after learning of the news.
Although the UK has so far avoided a recession, unlike the Eurozone, the figures underscore its relatively poor performance since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The UK economy is now down 0.2% from its year-end 2019 level in the second quarter, compared with 0.2% in Germany, 1.7% in France, 2.2% in Italy and 6.2% in the US.
(Reporting by Andy Bruce and David Milliken; Editing in Spanish by Benjamin Mejias Valencia)
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