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United Kingdom

UK economy grows 0.7% in third quarter, fastest pace since early 2024

Growth driven by AI-linked spending and computer programming offsets energy costs from the US-Iran war, a result that bears on the Bank of England's rate decisions.

Photo: Ugur Akdemir, Unsplash

What happened

The UK economy grew 0.7% between July and September, up from 0.5% growth in the second quarter. Kuwait Times+2 It was the fastest quarterly growth since the first three months of 2024, according to the Office for National Statistics. Kuwait Times+3 Growth was driven by the services sector, particularly computer programming, which the statistics office linked to artificial intelligence and cloud computing. Kuwait Times+1 The figure matched market expectations. Kuwait Times+1 Output grew 0.2% in September against an expected 0%, while August growth was revised down to zero from 0.1%. Pollar

Around it

Higher energy prices and other disruption from the US-Iran war weighed on the economy, and the statistics office said growth could have been stronger without the conflict in the Middle East. Kuwait Times+1 The Bank of England raised its rate by a quarter point to 4% on November 5, its first increase since August 2023. Pollar+1 The ONS reported annual growth of 2.1%, the strongest rate since August 2022, ahead of the Autumn Budget announced on October 28. Opus Advisory Group

Sources

  1. Kuwait TimesAI powers UK economic growth in third quarter
  2. The Vaultz NewsUK Economy Grows 0.7% in Strongest Quarter Since 2024
  3. FTMQ NewsUK economy expands by 0.7 per cent in third quarter
  4. BBCUK economy grows at fastest rate for more than two years
  5. PollarUK economy grows 0.7% in Q3 despite energy shock
  6. Opus Advisory GroupEconomic overview for November 2026
  7. economies.comBritain's economic growth faces a crucial test after the BoE's first rate hike in three years

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