It has been reported by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) that the UK economy returned to growth in January thanks largely to UK shoppers splashing out.
At the end of 2023 we were all told that the UK economy had entered a recession, this latest glimmer of optimism has got experts excited and could mean that the UK economy is slowly turning the corner.
The growth was lead by an uplift in services such as hairdressing and hospitality, both of which saw a 0.2% increase and was assisted by stronger performance on the High Street and spending in supermarkets.
How do the figures stack up?
In December the economy shrunk by 0.1% as retailers failed to bring in the necessary shoppers, whom a lot of which chose to spend their money with online retailers and earlier sales in the lead up to Christmas, Black Friday anyone?
At the start of the New Year, as is often customary, department stores and high street retailers laid on a variety of promotions which all helped boost sales in January. Sales were especially good for household goods and sports equipment, no surprise on the latter end.
A lot of us would have started the New Year with our fitness ideas firmly in hand.
Not out of the woods yet
Despite the encouraging figures the UK economy is not quite out of the woods just yet, January also saw falls in TV & Film production as well as legal services and pharmaceutical products, all of which can be quite volatile and saw a decline by 0.2%.
This accompanied with industrial action from the NHS and rail industry may have impacted the growth capability of the wider UK economy.
No change in interest rates
A lot of us will welcome the return to growth for the UK economy. However interest rates still remain high as the powers that look to dampen down consumer spending and bring down prices.
