UK GDP

Pound Sterling climbed against all major currencies except an outperforming Australian Dollar on Thursday after official data cast the UK economy in a resilient light for the second quarter.

UK economic growth data came in stronger than analysts were expecting when released on Monday, offering the Pound some sideline support at the start of what promises to be a pivotal week.

Recent data has shed fresh light on why the UK has emerged as the standout underperformer among G7 economies since the onset of the pandemic, according to Pantheon Macroeconomics, and slower growth in household spending accounts for much of the difference.

The British Pound held its Thursday gains against the Dollar, Euro and other major currencies following the release of UK GDP data on Friday that showed the UK economy shrunk 0.6% in September.

The UK economy shrank notably during August in an outcome that leaves GDP on course for a quarterly fall that would come sooner than many forecasters had anticipated and which could challenge the credibility of market-implied expectations for the Bank of England (BoE) Bank Rate.

The UK economy contracted at its fastest pace since April in a poorer-than-expected August performance that took economists by surprise and which indicates that growth will likely be negative for the third quarter overall. 

The ONS says the UK economy expanded in the second quarter of 2022, revising up initial estimates for a contraction of 0.1%.

The British Pound was soft at the start of a new week following the release of domestic GDP data that showed July's economic rebound was softer than expected.

The UK economy contracted less than was expected last quarter but its foundations are weakening with financial distress growing as a constraint within the small business sector and lynchpin of the labour market.

GBP was supported near recent levels against both the EUR and USD on Friday following the release of some better than expected UK GDP data that suggests the economy approaches a tough winter period in better shape than feared.

The surprisingly strong UK GDP data announced midweek leads economists at Goldman Sachs to revise higher their growth forecasts and lower expectations for a recession taking hold.

Barclays says the UK economy will avoid recession, however economists at Berenberg Bank say the UK could already be in the grip of a recession that will last for four quarters.

The Pound to Euro exchange rate's decline extended on the day the Office for National Statistics announced the UK economy shrank in March.

The UK economy will contract in the second quarter thanks in large part to the Queen's Platinum Jubilee says Oxford Economics, the independent economics research consultancy.

The UK economy grew again in February as the services sector continued its recovery from Covid, but the war in Ukraine and surging inflation are likely to slow growth rates over coming months.

Economists at PwC have slashed their economic growth forecasts for the UK economy and said the country's households face the biggest fall in disposable income seen in decades.

Omicron’s impact on growth less than feared, late January pick-up bodes well for February.

The latest official GDP data for the UK economy showed consensus-beating expansion in November that took it back to where it was before the arrival of Covid-19, with all sectors putting in strong growth.

The UK economy hardly grew in October and looks set to contract in December and January as the government squeezes activity through the reimposition of Covid restrictions.

The British Pound struggled to recover the substantial losses of the previous week, finding little support from a slew of UK economic data released Thursday November 11 that confirmed the economic rebound continued to disappoint against economists' expectations.