UK Economic Growth Tops Expectations

(RTTNews) - The UK economy expanded at a faster than expected pace in February with increases in all main sectors, data from the Office for National Statistics revealed Friday. Real gross domestic product grew 0.5 percent from the previous month following a nil growth in January. GDP was expected to climb 0.1 percent.

On a yearly basis, real GDP advanced 1.4 percent compared to economists' forecast of 0.9 percent.

On the production-side of GDP, services output logged a monthly growth of 0.3 percent after rising 0.1 percent in January. At the same time, industrial production rebounded 1.5 percent, following a revised 0.5 percent drop a month ago.

Construction output moved up 0.4 percent, in contrast to the 0.3 percent fall in January.

Within industrial output, manufacturing grew 2.2 percent, reversing a 1.0 percent drop in January.

In three months to February, GDP advanced 0.6 percent from the three months to November, mainly because of growth of 0.6 percent in the services sector.

Another data from the ONS showed that the visible trade gap widened to GBP 20.8 billion in February from GBP 18.2 billion in January. At the same time, the total trade balance posted a deficit of GBP 1.9 billion compared to a surplus of GBP 0.3 billion in January.