UK Economy Rebounds 16% in 3Q amid the Double-Dip Projection in 4Q

Britain‘s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 16.0 percent in the third quarter of 2020 due to the easing of lockdown restrictions, but was still 8.6 percent below where it was at the end of 2019, the British Office for National Statistics (ONS) said Tuesday.

“The bounce back in Quarter 3 2020 has been primarily driven by a recovery in private consumption,” said the ONS, noting that business investment in the period performed much weaker than the household consumption.

 

Despite a bounce back in 3Q, analysts said the last quarter this year is expected to see a double-dip recession due to the further lockdown measures in tackling the resurgence of infection cases.

“While a double-dip recession is a clear possibility if the Tier Four COVID-19 restrictions are extended into 2021, 3Q’s high saving rate provides optimism that as long as vaccines are effective and widespread, GDP will stage a strong rebound in the second half of next year,” said Ruth Gregory, an economist at the London-based economic analysis firm Capital Economics.

 

Britain reported another 33,364 coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 2,073,511, according to official figures released Monday. The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 215 to 67,616, the data showed.

 

Source: Xinhua