The United Kingdom economy entered a technical recession at the end of 2023 by chaining two consecutive quarters of contraction, with a decline in gross domestic product (GDP) of 0.3% from October to December, the National Statistics Office reported this Thursday. (ONS, in English).
This decline in GDP in the last three months of the year was added to the 0.1% drop between July and September, the agency indicated, when releasing the first of two calculations.
The ONS noted that, despite registering a technical recession in that period, the economy grew 0.1% compared to 2022.
In the third quarter of 2023 there were contractions in the main economic sectors, with a fall of 0.2% in services, 1% in industrial production and 1.3% in construction.
In addition, there was a decrease in the volume of net trade and spending by both the Government and households, the ONS noted.
It is the first time that the United Kingdom has entered a recession since it did so in the first half of 2020, due to the effects of the pandemic.
The data represents a blow, in a general election year, for Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who promised to grow the economy as one of his five priorities.
After hearing the results, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, said that the low growth “is not a surprise” as long as the Bank of England keeps interest rates high to lower inflation.
Labor Economy spokesperson Rachel Reeves said Sunak’s promise to grow the economy was now “in tatters”.
The head of the Government “can no longer say that his plan works,” declared Reeves, who defended that only his party “has a long-term plan for more jobs, more investment and reduced bills.”
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