UK economic growth jumps to 1.1% in Q2

UK GDP increased by a surprise 1.1% in the second quarter, almost double the consensus estimate.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) figure represents the largest quarterly increase in four years. It is a 1.6% rise on the second quarter of 2009. The increase is output was largely due to improvements in the business services, finance, and construction industries, which contributed positively to growth. However, this was partially offset by weakness in the transport, storage and communications sectors. Service industry output grew 0.9%, while production industry output grew 1%. But economists warned against over-optimism, pointing to weakening business surveys, among other ...