UK economy in October suffers first back-to-back declines since 2020

13/12/2024 16:22

Britain's economy shrank for a second month in October in the run-up to the new government's first budget, the first back-to-back falls in output since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.



Gross domestic product shrank 0.1% month-on-month in October, as it did in September, the Office for National Statistics said.



It was the first consecutive drop in monthly GDP - which is volatile and prone to revision - since March and April 2020, when Britain enforced its first coronavirus lockdown.



Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a monthly expansion of 0.1%.



The services sector flatlined, while output in the manufacturing and construction industries declined in October.



Friday's data adds to a run of worse-than-expected figures for Britain's economy, with business surveys and retail sales readings also falling flat.



"While the figures this month are disappointing, we have put in place policies to deliver long-term economic growth," finance minister Rachel Reeves said in a statement.