Britain's GDP grows 0.5 percent in October: statistics office

Britain's economy grew 0.5 percent in October, official data showed Monday, after a sharp fall the previous month in part because of the national holiday for Queen Elizabeth II's funeral.

Gross domestic product fell 0.6 percent in September after businesses closed for the royal funeral, and Britain's economy shrank by 0.2 percent in the third quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Darren Morgan, ONS director of economic statistics, said the economy was helped especially by car sales which "rebounded after a very poor September, while the health sector also saw a strong month".

The ONS said in its statement Monday that in the three months to October, the economy contracted by 0.3 percent.

Britain's finance minister Jeremy Hunt said in a statement that despite the figures showing growth, "there is a tough road ahead".

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"High inflation, exacerbated by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's illegal war, is slowing growth across the world, with the IMF predicting a third of the world economy will be in recession this year or next," he said.

British inflation stands above 11 percent, the highest level in more than 40 years.

The Bank of England has predicted the UK economy would contract in the final quarter of 2022, meaning the economy was in a recession.

The technical definition of recession is two quarters of contraction in a row.

Source: AFP