UK growth slows to 0.1% as car production slump drags economy ahead of budget

"UK economic growth slowed sharply in the third quarter, rising just 0.1% between July and September, as a steep fall in car production and subdued consumer spending weighed on activity ahead of the Chancellor's Budget later this month. The figure, published by the Office for National Statistics, came in below analysts' expectations of 0.2% and marks a clear slowdown from the 0.3% growth recorded between April and June and the 0.7% expansion at the start of the year."

"The ONS said the downturn was driven by a "marked" fall in car production, after a cyber-attack on Jaguar Land Rover forced the UK's biggest carmaker to halt manufacturing for five weeks. The attack, which began on 31 August, led to a 28.6% collapse in car output in September and pushed overall production output down 2%. Even excluding the disruption in the automotive sector, the wider economy showed signs of fragility."

UK GDP grew 0.1% between July and September, below analysts' 0.2% expectation and down from 0.3% in the previous quarter and 0.7% earlier in the year. The Office for National Statistics attributed the slowdown to a marked fall in car production after a cyber-attack on Jaguar Land Rover halted manufacturing for five weeks, causing a 28.6% collapse in car output in September and a 2% fall in overall production. Services and construction growth slowed, consumer spending remained weak amid high living costs and pre-Budget uncertainty. Economists caution this complicates fiscal choices and raises prospects of a Bank of England rate cut.

Read at Business Matters