UK GDP down

The Office of National statistics (ONS) has released figures for the last quarter of 2011, showing the UK''s GDP (gross domestic product) dropping by 0.2%, worse than expected and following previous growth of 0.6% in Q3 of 2011.

Analysts had expected the figures to be around 0.1% and we now have three months to wait before Q1 2012 figures are released, possibly confirming that at this time we may be technically in the second leg of a double dip recession, although if this does occur it is expected to be very shallow in nature and not the end of the world, economically speaking.

The reasons for the drop were caused by:

•  Less energy usage due to the mild winter we are having in the UK (-4.1%)
• Manufacturing down by 0.9%
• the Eurozone crisis
• Construction  drop bt 0.9%

The general forecast for total growth in the UK in 2012 is around the 0.6% mark but it will be the next set of figures that are currently expected to confirm a potential UK recession, short lived but with revisions to current data possible, this is by no means a sure thing anyway.